When You Kiss a Toad
by Asilanna Dark-witch
Summary: Todd has always been Wanda's. But will it last, when she crosses the line? Trials will test them both, and only time will tell their fate.
1. Chapter 1

_They were here again, some random mountain top that he really didn't care about. All that mattered was the he was here, and she was with him. He held her in his arms like the treasure she was to him, and for one glorious moment, she was his. Before she could come fully around, he brought her lips to his, ignoring the elf and everything else around him. Just like that, the world exploded inside of him. The second he kissed her, he knew he could never go back, never return to the life he had previously lived. Fire ignited inside his chest, burning all the way through his limbs in a matter of seconds before her eyes fluttered open. And just like that, it ended. The inducer failed him, revealing his true form, the one she hated so vehemently, forcing her to shove him to the floor in disgust while spitting his name out like poison. Dejected, he listened to Nightcrawler talk to her on his behalf- who would have thought!- and then she looked at him. For once, no hatred or loathing scorched him on the spot, just a softness and understanding….maybe gratitude? She thanked him, and his heart leapt up into his throat. She actually THANKED him! Suddenly, something was wrong. He was….flying? _This wasn't part of the memory.

A rude awakening crashed into my back as the firm structure of the lockers collided with me. I've decided high school lockers were made by jocks, because no one else would be stupid enough to line hallways with such large, painfully sharp and solid objects that people could be forced into on a daily basis. Such as now.

"Day dreaming again, are we Tolansky?" jibbed a rude voice, snapping my attention to the sneering face in front of mine. I let out a sigh, readying myself for what was to come.

"Hey now, kinda been missin' ya Duncan." I stammered, letting my eyes flick here and there, looking for an exit or a person that could help. Of course, there was none, that's why he chose now to pester me.

"Shut up!" he yelled. Apparently today was a bad day for him, not being in the mood for my playful banter and skipping right to the pounding. The first blow landed on my right cheek bone, but was strong enough to make my head ricochet off the unforgiving locker I was being held up against. It was then that I decided today was not my day either, and pulled my legs up to my chest; just high enough to brace my feet against his stomach and push. Maybe I added a little something extra, maybe I didn't. Either way, he went flying, and I got outta there. I rounded the corner a little too quickly, plowing straight into Boom Boom who had been leaning against the wall.

"Hey, easy there Slick!" she called with a laugh, helping to pick me up off the floor. I shot a glance over my shoulder, but Duncan was headed the other way already, after seeing Tabitha with me. "It's hardly noon and look at you, already getting' into trouble with Duncan." She teased, and I just smiled.

"Hey, you coulda helped, instead of just standing by to watch the show." I challenged her, to which she only shrugged.

"Had things gotten outta hand I might have shown him where his next class was, but from here it looked like you were handling yourself pretty well." A gentle thumb brushed by bruising cheekbone, and I winced. "That'll be a nice one." she condoned with a grin.

"Yeah, that's all you care about. How it looks on my face." I scoffed, rolling my eyes.

"Slick, that's hurtful." Tabby told me, putting a hand over her heart like I had stabbed it and pouting in that special way of hers. "As much as I hate to admit it, I kinda am startin' to like you." Instantly both of my eyes were on her, my face revealing an alarming look. She laughed outright at that, and threaded her arm through mine, walking me down the hall. "Not LIKE like, you know. Not like that. Just that I'm getting kinda fond of you, is all." I breathed a sigh of relief. What Tabby and I had was complicated, at best, but none of it was ever serious. What was it she had called it, when she had proposed the idea to me? Symbiotic? Whatever. All I understood was 'fuck buddy' and that's exactly what we were. We used each other, me for a rebound whenever Wanda had me so down and lonely I couldn't breathe, and her for only God knows what. Maybe a play toy and possibly a rebound off of the blue elf, not that anyone knew the second part of course. I don't think even I was supposed to. But now my thoughts were pulled back to the present as she was pulling me into an empty class room.

"Tabby-" I started, but she cut me off.

"I'm not stupid." She retorted, crossing her arms over her chest and pouting again. "You think so little of me sometimes!" I just shrugged and smiled, wondering why we were here, if not to use each other. "Look, don't go picking fights you can't win." She said, looking again at the bruise that was spreading across my face.

"Hey man, he started it and you know it." I said, and she sighed, letting her shoulders relax a little.

"I know I know. I just don't want you gettin' too banged up by anyone but me." she winked at me then, and I laughed. God I loved how playful she was. It kept my thoughts out of dangerous places, and my head above the surface I so often felt drowned by. Then, just to mess with my head even more, she grabbed both sides of my face and pulled me roughly to her, kissing me deeply before shoving me off and turning around, offering only her signature two-fingered salute as a farewell without even turning around. By the time I got my bearings, she was gone and I was smiling. She was one crazy chick, that's for sure.

I exited the classroom, and noticed it was passing period. Tabby was just about to round the corner at the end of the hall when she turned, blew a kiss and winked at me before disappearing. Of course everyone saw, that's why she did it, and instantly the whispers began. By now, everyone in this whole godforsaken high school knew about her relationship, or lack thereof, with me. She didn't have to care about whether I would taint her reputation; people still loved her and drooled after her by the hour. But it was public acts like that which were for me. I think maybe she figured she was helping me with my own rep by affiliating me with her. I almost laughed at that. As if I could ever have, or want, my own rep! I turned to meander somewhere else for a while and stopped dead.

_Wanda._

She was not two feet in front of me, arms crossed over her chest, eyes glaring daggers through me. My chest was constricted to the size of a bullet, which caught fire and almost blazed down to the bottom of the deep hole that my stomach had fallen in, somewhere beneath the floor. My throat closed and my heart stopped dead. It didn't sputter or flutter, it _stopped._ The sight of her, so close and actually looking at me, made me freeze head to toe. She was glaring unyielding loathing at me, but I couldn't do or say anything. We stood like this for what seemed like forever, letting the others move around us, as if they sensed the tension there.

"You sicken me." she finally spat, and the bullet that had become my lungs seemed to pierce my still heart just then, throwing it into overtime. She turned to leave me, and something possessed me. I reached out to her and called her name.

"Wanda, wait!" she whirled to face me then, lip curled into a snarl and her hands started glowing blue, readying for a hex. She glowered at me as if the one moment her name dare enter my mouth was enough to condemn me to hell for eternity. "Lemme-"

"Explain?" she demanded, and I felt her power wrap around me, throwing me violently into the same empty classroom I had just exited. "Don't you _dare _try to_ '_explain' anything to me!" The door slammed behind her, but she ignored it, standing over me with her hands still glowing that ominous blue aura. "Claim to love me, then sleep around with the school slut? Yeah, real persuasive." I hated to hear Tabby talked about like that, she was my one of the only people who liked me, but I didn't dare tell Wanda as much. Her sarcasm was almost tangible, slicing wounds deeper than bone with each word. She turned to go, and again I guess I must have had an extra dose of stupid that morning, because I leapt in front of her, putting my back to the door to keep her there with me.

"Wanda, please," I begged, putting my palms out toward her in a slow manner, trying to calm her down so I could tell her what had been bursting from inside of me for so long. But she would never give me the chance. Suddenly her usually blue-hexing hue turned to a deep scarlet red, and she snarled something fierce at me. I missed what she said, on account of the flesh-ripping power that threw me across the room and allowed her to exit without a second thought. Her power had ripped three deep gouges on my right side- like claw marks- across my shoulder and chest, lower ribs and upper thigh. The pain was blinding, enough that I couldn't even move to get myself outta there. I might have stayed there until the next class came in, if not for Rogue.

Through the throbbing hurt that filled my mind, I recognized her when she entered, though couldn't do much more than groan to let her know this. I heard her hiss when she saw the state I was in, and come to kneel beside me.

"Dang! She messed you up sumthin' fierce this time, didn't she?" Rogue whispered in that southern drawl of hers as she assessed the damage. "Hang in there Toad, I'll get help." Great. X-men to the rescue. Even if I felt like death or worse, I could still hear the scolding I would get from the Brotherhood, or worse Mystique, if they found out. She was talking quickly into some type of communication device, but I wasn't paying attention any more. Not until she touched me. I know I cried out in pain, but I don't remember that. I just remember the white-hot blaze that ripped across my right shoulder, then blackness.

By the time I came-to, it was only a dull ache and I was surprised to see I wasn't in their mansion, but in my own room. Looking around, I only saw Rogue, and it looked like she was leaving.

"What….?" I asked, moving slowly to sit up. She stopped at the door and turned, for a moment it looked like she was gonna bolt, but then she sighed and came back.

"You pissed Wanda of, 'member that?" she asked, and I nodded. "Well ah got some help from the new x-girl, Lilac. She heals. Then Tabby helped us bring you back here." New x-girl? Damn, I was outta the loop. I hadn't been paying attention to anything but Wanda, and sometimes Tabby when I needed something to help the numbness that came with Wanda's constant hatred and rejection. I took inventory of my wounds, but they had just about disappeared. I was a little sore in my shoulder, and tender across my ribs, but that was it. The skin didn't even show one scratch.

"Hey, uh give her my thanks."

"Ah will."

"And Rogue?" I called, as she headed to the door again. She paused and looked back, making me look away and fix my stare on an empty pizza box in the corner. "Thanks."

"You're welcome." I could hear the soft smile in her voice, so I looked back at her. "Can ah ask ya sumthin'?" I nodded, and she turned to face me, but still stayed in the doorway. "Why d'ya keep after Wanda when you have Tabby?" Despite everything, I laughed, which startled her.

"Rogue, do you _know _Tabby? No one _has _her, least of all me. If anything, it's her who has me. She calls the shots, and I jus' go along with it all. I still don't know why she came to me for that, but that's all it is, ya know?" I paused here, letting the humor fade from my face and looked away again. I couldn't say the real reason, as if it weren't obvious anyways.

"You really do love her, don'tcha?" I let out a long breath, and closed my eyes. Apparently my silence was answer enough. Rogue sighed as well. "Jus' watch out fer yourself," she advised. We both knew what she wasn't saying. Wanda is more dangerous than a loaded gun, and twice as likely to go off at any given moment.

"Thanks again Rogue." she nodded, and left me to dwell on the object of my pain and desire.


	2. Chapter 2

Sure, that Lilac girl could heal pretty nicely. But I still liked to remain in my room, with no one to bother me. All day had passed like that, and it suited me just fine. Now it was probably about 2 am, and the rain was pouring down on our little house, pelting against the windows upstairs. I could hear it perfectly, along with many other sounds. My little secret, I guess, that I had ridiculously good hearing and sense of scent. Hey, every mutant has to keep _some _secrets to themselves. Can't be putting everything on blast all the time. But it was in this moment, that those disgustingly familiar clinks two floors above made my heart sink. Instantly, my head rejected it. Wanda was healthy now. Well, healthier. She hadn't touched that stupid box in almost four months. She was recovering! So why now, would those repulsive metal jingles come wafting down to torture me? Maybe it was something I did….? Either way, it made my stomach churn to hear the scrape of wood as she opened it, and the soft clank of the metal blades clashing against one another as she sought one to bring out. _Thu-ump_ as she gently set the box down; she had selected one. I felt like I was going to puke, and I cast my eyes towards the small window at the very top of my wall. It was a window well, and my only access straight outside since I was in the basement. It didn't take me long to decide. Within seconds, I had squeezed outta there, and up the side of the house. She had left her window open, as she always did during a rain storm, and for a moment I hesitated on the roof just beneath it. But then the sounds of her pulling cloth away from her own flesh decided my actions for me, propelling me up, over and in before I could think better of it. She was so zoned out, she didn't even notice me, soaking wet and standing in the shadows of her room. The glint of light against the repulsive steel that she had in her hand made my chest tight, and my jaw clench. For a long time, she held still, looking at the blade and thinking God knows what. For a moment I thought she was just testing herself, until she put the blade to her skin.

"Wanda." That one word, the name that belonged to her, was pulled out of me out of agony, my tone was purely pleading and desperate. Instantly her eyes snapped up and landed on me, though they were so empty she couldn't even glare at me properly.

"What are you doing here?" What usually would have been a harsh demand was now a soft whisper that hung in the air. I took one step forward, and she tensed up so I stopped, but my eyes never left her.

"Wanda, please." I begged her, my vision flicking to the razor pressed against her wrist, then back to her face. My stomach was in knots, seeing her like this. She didn't even have enough humanity in her to be angry at me, like she usually was. She was breathing slowly, still trying to process my presence and what it meant. Finally, it clicked. A flash of fury lit her eyes, and her mouth pulled downward.

"What do _you_ know, Toad? Get out of here." But I couldn't. I made no move either towards her, or the window, I just kept staring at her, imploring silently for her to put the razor down. When I didn't move, she scowled deeper. "I said get _**out**_!" Her shout should have brought the attention of the others, but they were long passed out by now. I guess whenever I'm around her, I get stupid, because I started walking towards her, slow with my hands out to show her I meant her no harm.

"Wanda, just put it down," I pleaded. "You don't need that." I got close enough to her to touch her, but stopped. Instead, I chose to sit down on her bed beside her, keeping my hands where she could see them. All the while she was glaring daggers at me.

"Leave Toad," she hissed acidly at me, but I didn't even flinch. "_Now." _

"I won't. Not when you're like this." I told her softly. She didn't hex me on the spot, which was a good sign to me, so I kept going. "You're better than this, 'n if you don't know it by now it's time someone showed you." She was quiet for a long time, then her arms drooped and she looked away.

"You talk different now." She observed in a dead voice. At least she was talking to me now, never mind that it was off topic. I'd take what I could get.

"You said my slang made me sound like a gutter bum." I reminded her with a failed attempt at a smile. "I figured I'd attempt to clean it up for you." But she didn't seem to hear me now, she just stared listlessly out the window at the pelting rain. "Wanda?" I tried, but she was unresponsive. She had been like this ever since Magneto had messed with her mind. After wiping the memories of her past, she had been happier, but it was fake. When she regained said memories, she was worse off than ever before, and was thrown into bits just like this. Honestly, they scared the hell outta me. I hated to see her so lost, so depressed, to the point she had to inflict pain upon herself. She had been healthy for her longest streak yet, and I would be damned if I did nothing to keep her from going back. Finally her dull eyes pulled back to me, and seemed to drill into me.

"Why?" she croaked after a long stretch of silence. I knew she wouldn't believe me, but I had to tell her the truth.

"Because….well. I love you." Something flickered through her eyes, but it couldn't live long when she was so lost in her own despair like this. The hand holding the blade moved slightly, and her eyes were pulled to it. I was losing her, and I could think of nothing else to do. Slowly, I moved my hand between us, and went to take it from her. The zombie-like state she was in allowed me, until some part of her brain recognized what was happening. Like lightning, she snatched it back, and threw me to the floor, standing as she did so.

"Get _**out**_! You don't know _ANYTHING_, and don't you _dare _pretend to! Get out! **GET. OUT**!" she screamed, finally letting her rage boil to the surface and burn away the darkness that had held her before. Which could have been good, I suppose, if she wasn't glowing red. Suddenly a hex was thrown at me, and the second her power touched me I was filled with pain, then was levitated and hurled out of her window and into the storm. The hex released me when I was about 15 feet away from her window, and still two stories up. My powers allow me to do many things, but flying isn't one of them. I plummeted like a rock, hitting the ground with a sickening crunch I could hear and feel from several different bones. I could pinpoint that most of the pain was coming from both of my arms and shoulders, but from there everything else was aching. Most of my thought process halted then, my brain freezing where it was and refusing to compute. Guess that was the shock.

Hours later, some part of me noted the lights that ran over me for a second, and the sounds of a car. Sometime later, there was a figure over me, and voices filled my muted ears. Someone was talking to me….was I talking back? I was aware of my lips moving. Trying to focus, I squinted upward through the rain. Slowly my brain made sense of what my eyes observed. Pink sky, round peach and gold…..Tabby with a pink umbrella. She was talking to me? Or was it someone else?

"….usta been her, who else?"

"Why does he keep sayin' her name? Can't he see she's bad news?"

"We gotta get him outta here, before he catches pneumonia or something."

"Can we even move him? Ah don't think that's such a good idea…." that's when concentrating became too much for me, and I lapsed back into numbness, unaware of almost anything around me. Sometime later, I became aware of something cool flowing through me, causing my mind to sharpen and the numbness to ebb away slowly.

"Wanda?" Was she ok? Did I help? Did she go back to hurting herself? Did she need me? As soon as my brain could handle conscious thought, these questions filled my mind.

"Toad? Can you hear me?" Tabby was at my side, looking down on me worriedly. I tried to move, and yelped in pain. Both my arms were wrapped, and one of my knees as well. "Don't move, just answer me." I looked up at her with my head pounding, but nodded.

"What-" I was looking around, noticing I was now in my room again, when my eyes found Rogue collapsed on the floor next to my bed. "Rogue! Is she ok?" I asked, and went to move again only to be greeted by an unpleasant reminder telling me that moving was not an option. Tabby looked at her, and sighed.

"Yeah, she'll be fine. She tried something stupid, but it helped save you." Taking in more of my surroundings, I noticed blood soaked tissues had filled an empty can brought in from the kitchen and more were scattered around Rogue.

"What happened?" Tabby was looking at me from head to toe with something strange behind her eyes. "I mean to her, not me." I mumbled. I remembered all too well falling two stories out of Wanda's windows, and the circumstances that created that situation.

"How about you fill in the beginning of this story, and I'll tell you the end." She really wasn't going to budge on this. I sighed, and looked away. She didn't seem too worried about Rogue, which meant I was in worse shape than she was.

"I slipped and fell off the roof." We both knew it was a lie, and a pathetic one at that, but I didn't want to sell out Wanda's dark secrets. Tabitha rolled her eyes.

"Ok, we'll go with that. Is there a _reason_ Wanda...helped you….off of the roof?" she asked, sharp eyes on me, letting me know she didn't want any more bullshit answers. I refused to look her in the face. Admitting out loud to someone else that Wanda had hexed me out of her window to fall two stories and lay in the rain for hours made it real, and I didn't want it to be. When my silence persisted, she sighed and sat at the foot of my bed, careful not to disturb my injuries. "Toad, this is twice in one day she's hexed the shit outta you, both times ending in a miracle healing. Before, it was iffy at best. Now she's downright murderous. I know you love her, but she's going to kill you if things continue at this rate." Now she locked her eyes with his, all playfulness gone from her face. "You need to keep a safe distance between you and her." The way she said it, wasn't a request. I nodded, but said nothing. I was drawn to Wanda, and maybe I needed death to get in the way of that, but to Tabby it looked like I was agreeing.

"Now will you tell me what happened ta Rogue?" I asked, looking again at the unconscious girl on my floor. Tabby sighed and knelt beside her friend.

"We found you on the lawn, in your own little crater, and you had probably been there for hours. Both wrists broken, right ulna snapped clean in half, both shoulders dislocated, kneecap shattered and bruised head to toe." I winced at the gory details. I hadn't known what shape I was in, nor had guessed how bad it had been. "Yeah, exactly," she replied to my grimace. "Rogue was dropping me by to pick up some of my stuff before we-…well we stopped by and found you." I couldn't help but smile. That's Boom Boom. Always up to something mischievous. "We wanted to get you out of the rain, you were already shaking like crazy, but we were afraid to move you. So Rogue went back to the mansion and tricked Lilac into touching her long enough to steal some of her healing powers, then came back. We didn't want Lilac knowing what we were up to, because she told the professor about last time, and I'm sure you didn't want that going on again." Gratitude filled me, and I guess it showed on my face because she smiled at me. "Gotcha covered Slick." She told me with a wink, then Rogue moaned slightly, and began to stir, but remained unconscious. We watched her for a time, then I looked at Tabby again.

"So how did she get all…" I gestured to her form and the bloody tissues surrounding her.

"Lilac is a powerful mutant. Rogue wasn't prepared for that type of raw power, with no training. That's also why you aren't healed as completely as last time. I actually had to use some of the stuff the x-men taught me to help patch you up. But anyways, once she got started, it's like she was locked to you. She couldn't stop, and the power was being sucked from her into you. Her nose started bleeding, so I got her some tissues. She went through a lot of them, and I had to keep changing them out. Then finally, when you were mostly healed, she could pull her hands off of you, and the instant she did, she passed out and has been like this ever since."

"Yeah, your dumbass needed som' s'rious healin'!" Rogue mumbled from the floor. "I could see everythin' that ah was doin' inside you, it was weird. But you had already gone 'n gotten some kinda sickness from bein' out in the rain that long, and what with you losin' all that blood, 'n the broken bones….. you owe me."

"Yeah, I know." I told her, already wondering what I could do to pay her back for all of this. Gingerly she sat up, rubbing her head and looking at Tabby and I.

"Man, my head is _killin'_ me!" she closed her eyes again, and I felt a twinge of guilt. If it weren't for me, they would both be out having some form of illegal fun. Instead Rogue almost bled out trying to save my sorry ass.

"You two can crash here, yo. I mean if you're not up ta drivin' 'round in the rain storm out there, ya know?" Rogue's eyes snapped open, and she eyed me.

"K, I know what ya'll do together, 'n I'm not 'bout ta be a parta that!" she said, then closed her eyes again with a scowl as her head started throbbing again. Tabby laughed outright, and I let out a chuckle.

"I don't think that's what he meant," Tabitha told her with a smile.

"If you jus' wanna crash here, it'd be ok with me, yo." I told them, looking away again to hide the dark green that had started to color my cheeks. Tabby giggled at me, which only made the color that much deeper.

"Well, I'm not driving back in this, and you're in no condition to leave either, Bloodzilla." Tabby told Rogue, who only shrugged.

"Fine. But don't expect me to get all cuddly 'n shit with ya'll." she retorted as I handed her two of my blankets and a pillow. Tabby just smiled at me, and curled up with me like she used to almost every night. We were used to this routine already. Both Rogue and I were exhausted, and were out almost instantly. The last thing I remember was Tabby pulling my arm around her waist, yawning some form of goodnight to both of us, then…..

_Wanda._


	3. Chapter 3

It was faint at first, but enough to pull me out of a dead sleep. _Tap. Tap tap._ None of the Brotherhood would ever knock on my door like that. Blob would pound in down, Pietro would have been in here already and Lance would just shake my bed until I fell out. When I concentrated, I could hear the soft intake of her breath, and the floorboards make nearly inaudible sighs as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. Why was _she _here? She had never come this close to my room before, let alone knock on it. Instantly my heart was pounding and my breathing stopped. Every fiber in my being was shouting for me to leap to the door and open it, before she changed her mind, and I would have if it hadn't been for the scene around me.

Tabby was curled up on my right side, closest to the wall, and Rogue was on my left, both still sleeping soundly. Nothing had happened of course, but I knew what it looked like, I knew what she would see. I couldn't let her come in and find me like this, but it's not like I could exactly get up and move about without extensive pain from my still-healing wounds.

_Tap. Tap._ She was still there, still looking for me. It was actually _her_ looking for _me_! I couldn't believe it, and yet I had to do something to keep her from coming inside. Tabby fidgeted a little, letting out a soft sigh in her sleep, and my eyes fell on her for a moment. I didn't have long to think, because right then I heard Wanda going for the door handle, the soft clash of metal against skin, and I had about one second to decide. Sitting straight up, I pulled the sticky, glue-like green slime that was mine to command and launched it perfectly on target across the room, hitting the door just as it started to open. It was pushed back shut, and sealed from the inside by my own goop which hardened instantly around the handle and latch. I heard Wanda take a step back and inhale for a moment, being surprised that I had kinda slammed the door in her face. She waited there for a few seconds before turning on her heel and leaving.

What did I do? She had finally come to me, and I probably just blew the one shot I had with her! I put my face in my hands, and it was then that I was aware that Tabitha was awake. I felt her put a hand on my back and sit up beside me.

"It was the right thing," she told me softly, careful not to wake Rogue. "She's dangerous Toad. You know that. You should stay as far away from her as possible." What could I say to that? I knew Wanda wasn't best for my healthy, but it's not like I could make my heart beat that way for anyone else.

"I know Tabby, but….I can't. I gotta go find her." I shrugged apologetically and attempted to stand.

"Don't! You can barely even move, because of her! Don't go chasin' after her the first chance you get. It wasn't even a few hours ago that she left you to die, don't forget that."

"Hey, if you had a crack like this at blue boy, wouldn't you take it?" I asked her, which shut her up real quick. I knew it was, but the second I said it, I wished I hadn't. She let go of me, but her face was tight with hurt and she looked away quickly. I sighed. "Look, Tabby, I'm sorry yo, I didn't mean f-"

"No, you're right," she told me, though there was something wrong with her voice and she wouldn't look at me. "If I could do something to get Kurt back, I would. But I can't." I put my hand on hers, and she squeezed it back. "And besides, Kurt didn't abuse the living hell outta me." Ouch. Well she had me on that one.

"T' me, that doesn't matter. If I have ever a small chance at her, I'll take it. T' me, she's worth it, every little bit. 'N I'm not sure if that's what she's got in mind, but I do intend to find out." Tabby looked at me again then, and saw the resolve in my eyes. She let out a sigh of her own, then nodded.

"Can't say I wouldn't do the same, so I guess I shouldn't be trying ta stop you." I put an arm around her shoulders and gave her a gentle hug.

"Thanks T." I told her, and she just shrugged and laid back down.

"Don't push her anymore right now Toad. I'm not sure we can pull another miracle healing out of our ass at this point." I just flashed her a grin as I gingerly tried to maneuver around the still sleeping Rogue.

"I don't plan to." I reassured her, and went to stand. Instantly I regretted doing so as a stab of pain lit up my right leg and made me gasp in pain. "No, I'm fine." I told her, when she moved to help me. I gritted my teeth against it, and slowly made for the door. At my slow pace, it was a miracle I got upstairs at all, but when I got there, the other three guys were already in the kitchen rummaging for some type of edible substance.

"Whoa, what happened to _you?_" Blob asked when he saw me, making Lance and Pietro turn around. I guess I must have looked worse than I though, because both of their eyes went wide and for once, Pietro didn't have some quick, snide comment for me.

"Where's Wanda?" I asked them, ignoring Blob's question. They were still quiet for a minute before Lance recovered first.

"Told me something yesterday about going to Egypt or something," That snapped Pietro out of his daze, and he was now giving Lance a strange look.

"She-told-_me_-she-was-going-to-Mexico," Lance furrowed his brow, clearly disagreeing with Wanda's brother. He was about to say something in reply, but then Blob joined in.

"Hey, she told _me_ she was going to Greenland! I told her to bring me back a picture." Blob looked genuinely hurt, but I didn't care. As they argued amongst themselves, I faded from the kitchen to collapse on the couch in the other room. Egypt, Mexico or Greenland, it didn't matter. They all meant the same thing: She was _gone._ I had missed my chance. And with her different stories to everyone, it meant she didn't want to be followed, and probably wouldn't be back.

She was _gone._

"Hey, you ok?" Numbly I recognized Rogue's presence, but only nodded mutely. "Yah don't _look_ like you're okay…." I felt her sit down next to me, but made no move from my defeated posture on the couch. "What-"

"Hey, what're you doin' here?" Before she could ask any more questions, Blob had come in and spotted her. "Are you back?"

"Why would we ever wanta be back _here_ with you? I consider that a downgrade." Tabby had joined the conversation, which meant soon enough Lance and Pietro would be in here to drool all over her. Rogue was busy glowering at Blob and arguing, so I could take this chance to hobble back to my room. As I was leaving, I glanced at Tabby, and I could have sworn I saw her wink. That almost cut through the fog I was in, and I almost smiled. Almost. I just wanted to be alone, with no one arguing around me and no one pestering me with stupid questions. No, I was not ok. How could I be? She was gone. The fire that had been ignited inside of me from that first kiss now seemed to be suffocating me, clogging my throat with smoke and turning the rest of my insides to ash. I lay in bed, not really hearing or seeing anything that took place around me, not wanting to take the energy to notice anything. What was the point? The only thing that had ever been worth noticing had left me, and I had slammed the door in her face when that could have been my one and only chance with her.

* * *

><p>"Haven't seen you around lately, Toad. Have you been avoiding me?" Duncan's malicious grin was glaring down at me as I was walking back to the Brotherhood house after school. I didn't answer him, just kept walking. "What, with no Tabby around to protect you, you think you can just disappear for weeks then come back like nothing happened? You've missed a lot. Here, let me help you catch up." He took a swing at me, and I didn't even bother to dodge or even flinch. It landed on my right shoulder, the one that was still a little tender, but I solicited no reaction. For some reason, this seemed to make him angrier. "What, you think you're too good to talk to me now?" Duncan demanded, throwing another hardened fist into my lower back which forced me to the ground. Numbly I picked up my scattered things, which Duncan was now kicking around. With a sigh, I looked up.<p>

"Look man, just leave me alone, ok?" I asked in a quiet voice. He looked at me then, and his eyes caught mine. There was some type of jock come-back in his mouth, but after he saw my eyes it got stuck in his throat. For a fleeting moment, I wondered what he saw, but the idea didn't stick long enough in my head for me to care about it. I continued trying to get my stuff together, all while waiting for another blow to land somewhere on me. It never came. When I had everything, I stood up and risked a glance at Duncan. He was just standing there, staring at me. I shrugged at him, and continued walking. For once he didn't follow me. No shouts or insults were thrown, no jibs called after me as I walked. Just…..silence.

I don't know if he stayed there or left, because I didn't pick my eyes up off the pavement right beneath my feet until I reached the house. My backpack hit the floor and I went straight for me room. I expected to be left alone upon reaching my bed, but a surprise waited for me. Lance was standing awkwardly next to my door, and looked up when I came by.

"Hey," he offered, and I gave him the chin-jerk of a greeting without saying a word before opening my door. Maybe he would just leave me alone if I ignored him. That theory soon proved wrong as he followed me in and closed the door behind him. "Hey, we gotta talk." I simply laid on my bed and stared up at the ceiling, lacing my fingers together behind my head and crossing my ankles. I could tell Lance was feeling really discomfited just standing in the middle of my room, but I continued to ignore him. "Toad, c'mon man this is getting ridiculous. Will you even just look at me?"

"Wadda you want Lance," he sighed and pulled a chair out from underneath a heap of wadded clothes and old, oily pizza boxes, sitting on it backwards and propping his elbows on the back of it to continue staring at me.

"I know she meant a lot to you, I get that ok? But it's been almost a month and, well, truthfully you're starting to scare us. It's like you're a friggin' zombie or somethin'," again, I was silent, unmoving and only offering my breath as a source of noise. It was like that for a long stretch of time, before he let out another sigh, and stood. "Whatever Toad. Don't say I didn't try," he said, pushing the chair away from him and heading to the door. He paused there, with his hand on the knob. "But, uh, if you ever _do_…I dunno, like, need to talk or whatever….." when I didn't answer, he opened the door and stepped out. "Your turn. Good luck, it's like he's not even there anymore."

"Hiya Slick!" Boom Boom. Of course he would sick her on me. Her presence stirred behind the numbness enough for me to pull my head up and see her flounce into my room, slamming the door behind her. "What's goin' on?" She asked as she plopped down at the foot of my bed, putting her back against the wall and her legs over mine. I shrugged at her, and went back to staring at the ceiling. I knew why she was here. Lance, hell everybody for that matter, knew that Tabby is the only person I'll listen to or even talk to. It was by her prompting that I starting going back to school.

"Go home T, you're wastin' your time here yo," my voice sounded dull even in my ears, but that didn't even phase her. She leaned down, putting her chin in her hands and her elbows right next to my rib cage and continued to stare at me, her feet now kicking in the air above her as she lay on her stomach.

"C'mon, let's go someplace tonight! Kitty 'n me, we found this place that's totally abandoned, it's great for a little bita fun. C'mon Slick, lemme take you there. We'll blow some shit up 'n get outta there before the cops can bust us. You'd never _believe_ what I learned to do with some starch or even flour!" I looked down at her then, and she beamed a smile at me.

"Na, not tonight yo," I said, and went back to staring at my ceiling. She made a disgruntled noise, and next thing I know I was pulled up into a sitting position with my back against the wall and her face not even two inches from mine.

"I hate seeing you like this," she confessed and for a moment there was a twinge of sadness in her eyes but then it was replaced with a scowl "but that's no reason for you to go around actin' like this! C'mon Toad, talk to me. Yeah, I know she's gone and it hurts. But you've had your time to mope about, 'n now it's time to start living again!" Our eyes locked, her glaring into mine, and me staring torpidly back. Even in this state, I had to appreciate the fire she could muster at a seconds notice. Eventually I broke the stare down and looked away.

"I jus' can't Tabby. Not right now, ya know? Jus'….gimme some time, yo," she held me there for a minute longer, then released me and sat ro my right, laying her head on my shoulder.

"How _much_ time? You've already been out of touch for way too long."

"I dunno yo. I'm jus' not there yet." I felt her fingers lace through mine, and relaxed a little.

"Ok," she told me softly "Just don't take forever about coming back. I kinda miss your dumb ass." I felt my hand squeeze hers and by some miracle, there was a ghost of a smile on my face. God bless her, with her fire and spunk. Somehow she had started the slow but deliberate process of thawing my frozen state. For the first time in almost a month I felt…well, I'm not entirely sure what to call it. Not full of despair maybe.

"Tabby?" I asked quietly, placing my head on top of hers.

"Hm?" she asked as she snuggled closer to me.

"Thanks. I mean it. Thank you." I felt her head pulled out from beneath mine, and I felt her lips brush my cheek.

"No problem Slick. It'll be ok." And strangely, I believed her.

We fell asleep together that night, and it felt good to not be alone. I hated to admit it, but I felt worlds better because of that crazy firecracker. Her body was warm and comforting against me, and her rhythmic breathing was soothing to me. Her words circled through my head over and over. Maybe it would be ok. Maybe….. By the time I woke up the next morning, I felt as if I had taken a hot shower after standing in a blizzard for too long. Tabby chose to wake me by lightly kissing my cheek before getting outta bed.

"I'll catch you later, 'kay? Gotta early morning session with Logan back at the mansion," she explained as I pulled myself up. "I'll come back around like, 7 tonight. Promise you'll be here?" I felt a small smile and nodded

"Yeah, I'll be here yo. Don't worry." She flashed another blinding smile at me before dashing out the door. It was quiet, way too early for any of the other to be up. I thought about going back to bed, but the temptation of being the first one to the cereal in the kitchen kicked in, and I slowly shook off any grogginess. I got to the kitchen about the same time the sun was almost all the way off the horizion and rummaged through the cupboards.

"You're up early," purred a deep, velvet voice that struck dread into me upon the first syllable. I jumped violently and spun around to face her.

"Y-y-you're back!" I stammered, eyes wide as I intently watched the blue woman before me.

"So it would seem." Elegantly, she stood and glided towards me, and I felt myself swallow loudly. Scorching yellow eyes bore into mine, and she had that cat-like grin on her face. "Assemble the others. I have a job for you." Without another word, I was outta there and up the stairs to Pietro's room, which was the first one I could reach. I knocked on the door loudly until it opened.

"Toad-I'm-so-going-to-kill-you-for-this-I-swear-to-God-you-will-wish-that-you-had-never-been-born-by-the-time-that-I'm-done-w-"

"Shut up! Mystique's back!" I hissed, trying to keep my voice down. As I intended, that statement did shut him up instantly. The silence was quickly followed by swearing then he sped off to get his clothes. "She wants us to meet her downstairs, like _now _yo." Pietro broke the news to Lance and Blob, and within two minutes all of us were assembled in the living room, standing straighter than military cadets as she paced in front of us.

"It seems you have let a certain asset of our team slip through your fingers," she was saying, her voice deadly calm. "Even _I_ didn't think you could mess up _this_ badly, or else I wouldn't have left in the first place." None of us knew what she was talking about, but we weren't about to point that out, instead we stood in silence and let her continue her rant. "Luckily, I've reassembled some old connections that will help you on your mission to locate and return what you have lost." Mystique stopped pacing and turned towards the door. It opened and Rogue came in, looking worse for wear and very angry about being there. "Now I expect the lot of you to _do as you're told_," she continued as Rogue sulked in the corner, glaring daggers at her. "If you muddle this, intense repercussions will follow." Finally Pietro ventured out, since none of the rest of us were about to.

"Uh, Mystique?" she turned on him, and he stiffened even more.

"Yes Pietro, what is it?"

"Well, uh, what is it exactly that we lost and now are meant to retrieve?" Damn. She had scared him to the point that he was talking at a normal pace. But I was glad it was him that asked. Anger flashed through her eyes and I knew if it were anyone else who had asked, all hell woulda broken loose. For some strange reason, she has a soft spot for Pietro. And by soft, I mean not scathing upon first contact. Slowly, she looked at all of us, to make sure that we all had the same question on our faces. Satisfied that it wasn't only Pietro who was ignorant, she rolled her eyes.

"The only _remarkable _person on this team, and the one person who ever gave you a shot at anything. Wanda."

* * *

><p>Thank you to mysteryrogue29! And another thank you to talk-ape for the reviews! I really appreciate it! Thoughts, comments, questions?<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

Tabby's gonna kill me. Not only did I disappear right after I told her that I wouldn't, but now I was out looking for Wanda. My stomach was in knots with that thought. Why did Mystique have to do this? And now, of all times?

"Stay focused Toad," came a soft voice to my right. Rogue's eyes were sharp on our surroundings, reminding me that I did need to pay attention. Russia is no place to day dream, especially the part we were currently in. Her eyes found mine, and they softened a bit. "You gonna be ok?" she asked, and I nodded.

"Yeah, it's just another job." But we both knew that wasn't true. She gave me a sympathetic look for a moment, then returned to scouting out the area around us. We were the only ones visible, but I knew that Lance, Blob and Pietro could see us just fine. The sun was just setting, and it was getting colder by the minute.

"C'mon," Rogue said, pulling me into a nasty looking bar that was barely standing. I tried my best to stay behind her, because right now she had that look in her eyes that usually made people stay away. She towed me quickly and quietly to a table in the corner, farthest away from everyone. A disheveled woman came over to us, eyeing us up and down, and spoke in thick Russian. I didn't understand one word, but Rogue replied back in the same language without hesitation, which took both me and the server by surprise. She recovered faster than I did, because she said something else, then vanished in the same direction from where she came. "What?" Rogue asked with a shrug when she saw I was staring at her. "So ah tapped someone ta pick up the lingo, sue me."

"Hey, whatever I'm not gonna talk shit; I'm just always surprised, never bored, ya know? I'm not complainin' or anythin' yo," that brought a smile to her face.

"Tabby's right. You are kinda sweet, deep down in there sumwhere," I scowled at this, and went to retort but she cut me off. "We should be payin' attention to our surroundin's." Couldn't argue with that, so it's what we did. A few moments later the same server came back with two dirty tankards filled with what I guess they thought was a form of liquid. It half-heartedly sloshed as she slammed them down before us and left.

"Alright! No legal drinkin' age!" I said with glee and pulled it towards me. After taking a sniff, I had second thoughts about downing it. "Ugh, what _is_ this, yo, poison?"

"Jus' drink it 'n stop wh- sh! Here they come!" She was right. Wanda had just entered through the door across the room, with that giant called Colossus flanking her. I thought I could handle seeing her again. I had lived with her, and I dealt with seeing her every day before. I didn't think this would be any different. I was wrong.

The second I saw her, I turned to ice and felt most of me go numb, including my brain. It suddenly became very hard to breathe, and I couldn't hear a word that Rogue was saying. There she was, not 30 feet from be at the bar. Neither her nor Colossus had noticed us and went straight for the seats up front, putting their backs to us. Something was different about her… I couldn't place it though. Maybe it was just that I hadn't seen her in so long. I began to ache with yearning: She was so close! Right about then is when I felt a jolt of pain through my body and lost a significant amount of energy for a split second. It dissipated just as quickly as it began, but now I was back to reality and searching for what had happened. Rogue was slipping her glove back on and looking at me worriedly.

"Sorry! You weren't responding ta me, 'n you weren't breathin' right 'n I didn't know what else ta do, ah jus' gave you a tiny tap that's all. Sorry!" I shook my head, recovering.

"Na, na it's fine yo, I'm good. Thanks, I needed that," Rogue looked dubious to my claim of being fine, but didn't call me out on it. She started speaking into a communicator on her wrist that was connection to Pietro, and I let my eyes wander back to Wanda, even though I could feel Rogues eyes on me so intently it was almost awkward. I ignored that and observed her. She looked…good. Healthy. There wasn't the aura of anger and hate around her that she usually had, and she held herself much more relaxed than when she had lived with us. There was almost a smile on her lips, a response to something Colossus had said. She seemed happy here. With him. "Hey, uh, maybe we should jus' leave her here. Why are we really tryin' to get her back, anyways?" Rogue just shook her head.

"Not my call. That's Mystique's, 'n ya'll can be my guest if ya wanna go on back 'n tell her that ya didn't get the job done 'cause ya didn't wanna do it, but I ain't. Ah jus' wanna get this done, so she c'n leave me the hell alone." That sparked interest in me. If I wasn't so focused on Wanda, I would probably ask what Mystique could possible hold over Rogue. It was then that my extensive glances at Wanda paid off, I saw Colossus glance back at us and furrow his brow.

"Shit. We've been recognized by the big guy, let's get outta here, yo." I went to stand, but Rogue grabbed my wrist, stopping me from moving.

"Jus' wait, let's see how this plays out." That was definitely _not _what I wanted to do, but the bigger part of me wanted to remain in the same room as Wanda for as long as possible, so I stayed. Piotr stood and headed our way. "Heads up," Rogue said quietly, and I wasn't sure whether she said it to me or to the communicator.

"What you doing here?" Piotr demanded in his heavy Russian accent as he approached us. "Leave." Rogue stood, though not like it did any good. He still towered over the both of us easily.

"We jus' came ta have a word with Wanda, we don't want any trouble."

"Wanda happy here. Leave!" he insisted again, but Rogue had that stubborn look to her, and I knew that meant trouble.

"Look here ya yahoo, ya can't be tellin' me what she does or doesn't want when we haven't even talked ta her! Jus' lemme have a word with her, _then_ we will see where it goes from there." Piotr was shaking his head, and his eyes looked pleading instead of angry.

"Leave her alone. She happy here, not back with you in war every day." He had a point there, and I wouldn't argue with that. Why drag her back to the place she had just escaped from? Obviously it was hell for her. If it was up to me, I would have left right then, but it wasn't, and I knew Mystique would be on all of our asses if we came back without her, then would probably take it into her own hands to somehow get her back. That would be even worse. Rogue was still arguing with Colossus, but my eyes were back on Wanda. She still had her back to me, and was staring down into a dirty tankard of her own. Piotr said something loud, which made her turn around. Her eyes found him, scrutinizing the situation around him. Then she recognized Rogue and anger filled her, instantly followed by her gaze falling on me. For a split second she looked pissed as hell, then she seemed surprised. Her face went blank, and her eyes softened.

"Toad?" she called softly, as if she didn't really believe my presence here. I blinked, hearing my name in her mouth for once without malice or disgust. Piotr turned around when he heard her call to me, and Rogue took that as her opening. She laid a bare hand on him, and I saw him tense up then fall to one knee as her power stole his energy, memories and mutant ability. It only lasted a second though, then he used his power to cover himself in metal, earning shouts from the people around us. Rogue's power no longer worked on him, and he stood to face her.

"You were warned!" he yelled as he tossed our table and everything on it aside as if it were made of tissues. Rogue pulled out her own metal skin, earned for the few seconds she had contact with him and took her stance just Pietro came zooming through the door and the earth under my feet started to shake. Piotr was picking up things and throwing them at Rogue, only to have them splinter into pieces upon contact with her newly-added metal. I jumped up into the rafters of the place as Lance shook the earth, trying to get out of the way of it all, but the place was already in such shambles that the instant my weight touched the corroded beam, it fell to the floor, pinning me there. Rogue was now locked with Colossus, arm to arm, as they both battled each other and Pietro was busy trying to talk to Wanda but she had already hexed him through the back wall. It was Blob that came to my rescue, picking up the beam and throwing it at Piotr.

"Thanks," I told him with a grin, and he just shrugged, right as Wanda hexed him out the side wall. She had Pietro and Lance in a cage made purely of her own red hex-magic, and Blob looked to be out for the count. Colossus finally got the upper hand over Rogue as he tripped her and forced her to the floor. A gunshot went off as the grungy looking bar tender seemed to have located his gun, but Wanda took care of him just as Rogue, still in metal form, was thrown at me by Piotr.

"No!" I heard Wanda shout, and Rogue was stopped in mid air barely two feet from me by purple hex magic. Since when did Wanda have different colors? I didn't have long to think about it, because the iron-clad Colossus was charging us at full speed. "Piotr, stop!" she called again, but he already had too much momentum to do any sort of stopping. Wanda surrounded him with a purple hex as well, levitating him off the ground to hover in front of Rogue but not close enough to touch her. What was she doing? I looked at her, trying to figure it out, only to feel my heart stop. What I assumed as the bar tender had reloaded his gun and had it pointed directly at my Wanda. I didn't have time to think, just act. I took a giant leap towards her, grabbing her and pulling her to the ground right as I head the ear-splitting shot fired. Pain bloomed across my hip, and I cried out. I heard two more crashes as Rogue and Colossus were set down and Wanda then used her free hands to send a red hex right over us and directly at the man holding the gun, throwing him out of view before he could fire again.

"Toad!" I heard Rogue call, but I was only slightly paying attention to her, or anything else around me. Wanda hovered over me, looking worriedly at the wound.

"It looks like it just grazed you, so it hurts but you'll be ok," she told me softly as she inspected it. Since when did she care? Her eyes found mine, and there was something in them that I didn't identify. I didn't fully assess it, because that's when Rogue arrived, shortly followed by Piotr. He looked confused, and she looked worried.

"Dang Toad! Why is it ya always take it upon yourself ta go 'n get hurt all the time! Seriously, are ya _tryin'_ ta get killed?" she demanded, coming to the opposite side of Wanda as I sat up. I winced, but managed to get to a seated position. Hell, I'd had worse.

"You not want me to rid of them for you?" Piotr was asking Wanda in a very baffled voice, and she looked up at him. She gave him a smile, and instantly I felt more jealously for the giant Russian mutant that I ever had before.

"No, Piotr, but thank you. I can talk with them."

"Hey, uh, maybe we should do this somewhere else. Ah think we're 'bout ta have sum bad comp'ny." Rogue said, and they looked to where her eyes directed them. There was a large congregation just outside of the hole made by blob of very angry, mean-looking Russians.

"Agreed," Piotr said and looked to Wanda for instruction. She chewed her lip for a minute, which I knew meant she was thinking very quickly about something that troubled her.

"Alright, can you carry Toad and lead Rogue back to the house? I'll take care of the rest."

"Of course." He complied, and bent to pick me up.

"Wanda-" I started, then hissed as Colossus joggled my newest wound. Her eyes found mine when they opened again, and she looked….troubled? Usually not a look I would get from her.

"Not right now. We'll talk when I get back." And just like that, she turned her back to me, and seemed to gather anger until it was almost tangible as she advanced on Pietro. I could hear her shouting at him and Lance, that they should leave, forget her location and tell Mystique to do some very unlikely and impolite things to herself.

"Come now, follow me, I will take to safe place," Piotr was telling Rogue, who nodded but seemed to be buzzing with nerves and ready for anything. I kept Wanda in my sight for as long as possible, but she never once looked our way, just continued to threaten the hell outta Pietro and Lance, making sure that they would leave us alone. A shiver erupted through me as we exited, letting me know we were outside again. Both Rogue and Colossus became metal so they wouldn't have to feel it, but there was no such luck for me. "My apologies, little frog," Piotr told me as he strode forward faster "I will get you from cold as soon as I can."

"Th-th-th-thanks, yo" I stammered. He picked up the pace, making sure to go just slow enough that Rogue could keep up. We went through several back alleys which I never would have attempted on my own before coming to a dead end.

"Hold the frog-man please?" he asked Rogue, who extended her metal arms and took me as easily as if I were a puppy. Piotr walked forward to the wall and pushed as hard as he could until it moved back about a foot, then dropped down into a crevasse, which then slowly moved it out of our way and allowed us to step through. When Rogue was safe on the right side of it, Piotr fitted his hand into a hand-hold at the top, and pulled the wall back up to the surface, then pushed it back into place.

"C-c-c-c, c-c-c-cool." I managed to stutter out because, despite the freezing weather, that was the coolest thing I had seen in a long time. I heard Rogue laugh, and Piotr grinned a metal smile at me.

"It keeps us safe when the world is not." Wish I had a place like that. He took me back from Rogue and continued on down the dimly lit hallway to a white doorway at the end, opening the door and entering into warmth. "Shut door behind you, please," he informed Rogue, who obliged and lost the metal skin as she looked around.

"Wow. Nice place." And after I got over the initial joy of being warm, I looked around and saw it was. I never woulda expected this homey place to be housed right in the middle of Russia's slum. The walls were all a soft white, making it seem lighter than it actually was, and all the furniture was pristine. I could tell that there were several room, located down the three hallways that branched off of the main room, which meant he and Wanda were not the only ones who lived here. A fire was already lit in the fireplace, which I was placed next to along with a blanket. "The shaking will stop soon." Piotr reassured me, and I just nodded.

"Thanks for bringin' us here," Rogue started, though still seemed on edge. "Uh, so c'n I ask what the hell that was, back at the bar?" Piotr shook his head.

"Wanda will explain what she wants, when she get back. Until then, my wife make you at home. Please, be patient."

"W-w-wife?" I blurted, still thawing but attentive enough to catch that. Wife? Wait, Piotr had a wife! Unless the Russians do things differently, that meant that Wanda didn't come here to be with him! Piotr was giving me a weird look.

"Yes, my wife. She bring you hot drink, to help against cold." Rogue was smiling softly, she knew why I was happy that he had a wife, but the humor didn't reach her eyes.

"Th-thanks, yo." I murmured, and went back to burrowing down in the blanket and waiting. If Wanda wasn't here for him, then why _was_ she here? Hopefully Wanda was telling the truth about meeting them here, and this wasn't her way of ditching them. I was lost in thoughts like these when a pretty, very young blonde woman offered me a thick mug with something steaming inside of it.

"Here, for you." She said, in a thicker accent than even Piotr had.

"Oh, uh thanks." I took it from her with a smile, and she smiled back at me. She left, and it was just the three of us again. It was quiet while we waited, none of us really having anything to say to one another. Finally, just when I thought that Wanda had bailed, the door was opened and a draft of cold air filled the room. When it shut and I could see straight, my heart swelled. It was her. Her cheeks and nose were slightly pink, but she had kept herself mostly warm with the purple magic that was fading from her now. Piotr stood when she entered, but she just shook her head at him, and he sat back down. He eyes then wandered to Rouge…then to me. Again, something unfamiliar sparkled there as her gaze lingered on me, but then she looked away, moving to hang her coat up then sit on the couch next to Piotr.

"When does Mystique expect you back?" she asked, not really directed at either of us, but my throat had closed off so Rogue had to answer.

"Within three days," Wanda just nodded, as if she had expected that. Rogue fidgeted, obviously wanting to ask something, but struggling with it. Eventually, she blurted it out. "Are you goin' ta come with us?" Wanda looked up at her, then to me, then down to the floor.

"Wanda, stay here. You are happy here." Piotr pleaded from beside her, and she looked up at him. "You have learned much while you staying here. Don't go back to that." She let out a sigh, and propped her chin on her hands, and her elbows on her knees.

"I know. And I'd like to stay here. I don't want to go back," again her eyes found me, but quickly shifted to Rogue "but Mystique….if she wants me, there's a reason for it. And she's not one to give up easily. I don't want her coming here and finding you and your family, because I'm too stubborn to go this time." Piotr looked uncomfortable, and Wanda put a kind hand on him. "You and your family have been very kind to me, and I appreciate that. I won't destroy all of that so easily." She turned to face Rogue again "So I guess that answers your question. I have to go back, to protect Piotr." I could hear the dismay in her voice, and wanted nothing more than to tell her she could stay here, even though I knew that wasn't possible. Rogue looked surprised, but said nothing.

"Will you be needing help with the packing?" Piotr asked, and she shook her head.

"I don't have much. When Agatha comes back, will you tell her what happened please? She can do as she wishes, and if she chooses to stay here, tell her I will come back as soon as Mystique is done with me." So she didn't plan on stay at home. How could I begrudge her such a haven as the one she found here? I couldn't, but that didn't stop me from wanting to be near her.

Rogue could see the way I was staring so hungrily at Wanda, and asked Piotr to show her some other part of the house. He didn't understand why, but obliged. After they left, Wanda refused to look at me and made a point of staring at something in the exact opposite direction of me. My heart was still in my throat, pounding obnoxiously loud, but I felt a twinge in my chest as she so obviously ignored me.

"Wanda," I started, but stopped. What should I say? What _could _I say? Slowly she brought her gaze back to me, and she looked almost sad. What had I done now? I never should have come.

"Toad," she sighed, then and clasped her hands in front of her "Look, I should have said it a long time ago, I shouldn't have left without saying it, but my head wasn't in the right place…look, I'm sorry." What? Why was she apologizing to me? Didn't she hate me? I turned more to face her, then winced as the wound on my hip protested. This caused her brow to furrow and she stood, coming over to me. "Let me see?" she asked in a quiet voice, and I oblige, moving the blanket outta the way and pulling my torn shirt up. She inspected it, then bit her lip as she thought. "I can't heal this, but I think Piotr knows how to clean it."

"You can heal?" I couldn't help but blurt that out. Her powers had never shown me anything but destruction. She offered a small, weak smile, but it was a smile nonetheless.

"Agatha has been teaching me a lot while I stay here. I'm learning, but…I have yet to do a charm properly." So Agatha Harkens, her old teacher, had been helping her. That explained a lot. She called Piotr in to help with the wound, but my eyes never left her through the whole thing. Finally he finished, and Rogue came back in as well.

"Alright, we really should leave soon, before those otha losers go 'n tell Mystique everythin' they saw." Wanda looked at her, sighed then nodded.

"I'll get my stuff," she said, and left quickly but came back ever faster. She really didn't have much. Just a backpack and a large shoulder bag. Her face was resigned as she rejoined us, giving Piotr and his wife parting embraces then looking at Rogue and I. "Alright, I'm ready." And that was it.

I had found Wanda, and I was bringing her back.

She was coming home.


	5. Chapter 5

I tried to do as Tabby and Rogue begged me to, I really did. I tried my hardest to avoid Wanda, instead of seeking her out at every opportunity as I so desired to do. Apparently, she was doing the same thing because even though we had been living in the same house, I had barely caught glances of her here and there. She hadn't said one word to me after the encounter in Piotr's house, not even on the long ride back. This confused me more than it usually did, because this silent treatment was so different than the one I was used to getting from her. There was no anger in this act. And yet, she was the only one I could say that for.

The other three Brotherhood members had taken it upon themselves to ostracize me at every given chance; even Blob who I had thought had some sort of non-hatred for me going on went outta his way to terrorize me. I could only guess that it was because Mystique had put the hurt on them for coming back so early when Rogue and I stayed, and were the ones to bring Wanda home. I decided to stay locked in my room every moment that I wasn't at school or on some lame-ass mission for Mystique, to minimize time spent as their target practice.

_Ba-Ba-Boom. __**Boom**_

I felt it in my bones, even a floor down, and smiled to myself. Tabby was here, and it sounded as if Mystique had asked her to leave. Pulling myself up and out the window, I managed to be leaning against the side of the house when she came out, hands in her pockets and passion burning in her eyes.

"Was wonderin' when I'd be seein' ya back here, yo," I told her, making her look up at me. For a moment the irritation Mystique had caused fizzled, then she relaxed and her face softened.

"You scared the hell outta me, Slick! You promised you'd stay here, 'n when I come back everyone's gone! I didn't know what had happened to you!" I hugged her, and she responded by crushing me.

"Tabby….can't…_breathe_!" I wheezed, and she relinquished me, laughing as I coughed. I saw Lance looking at me out a window, and Tabby turned to see what had caught my attention.

"What's all the hostility I'm sensing?" she asked, and I just shrugged. The ground started to shake, and Boom Boom turned around so that Lance could see her hands fill up with explosives. Instantly, the mini earthquake stopped. "That's what a thought." She said, and lobbed her small bombs in the air instead of at him so they exploded above us. She stuck her tongue out at him and turned back around. "You gonna tell me what happened, or am I just gonna have to guess?"

"Well, uh, I guess you saw that Mystique's back," I replied vaguely, and she waved it off.

"Not what I meant, 'n you know it. Where did you guys go, 'n why? I mean there's been rumors but…." She looked doubtful but kept an intent lock on my face and how I reacted. So news was already out that Wanda had returned. I sighed.

"Yeah, Mystique had us in the middle of Russia, up to our necks in trouble, but uh, well we did what she wanted us to." I looked away then, because I didn't wanna see her reaction. "We brought Wanda back." The silence was long enough for me to turn back to her, but her face wasn't upset like I had thought, more pensive than anything.

"What's she need Wanda for?" Tabby finally asked me, and I shrugged.

"Like she tells any of us anythin', yo. We're jus' her dogs that she plays fetch with," then I felt her hand on my shoulder, and she was looking at me with all playfulness gone.

"Are you doin' ok?" she asked quietly, and I nodded, but said nothing more. She would understand. "Alright, that's it, I'm kidnappin' you today," she kicked open the door of Lance's jeep and motioned for me to get inside. "No 'if's, 'and's or 'but's about it, now get in."

"But wh-" I started, but she cut me off.

"No questions, now get in 'n let's get outta here before Lance can see what we're up to!" Valid point. I jumped in, and soon enough we were speeding away to some unknown destination. After screeching through most of Bayville at break-neck speeds, she finally picked a stopping point, parking the jeep on the grassy lookout point on the outskirts of town. "Innit beautiful?" she asked, observing our town and the beautiful day that would be coming to an end here in a few hours. She smiled and got out, going to lay across the hood of Lance's rig. I joined her, and she scooted up close to my side, laying her head on my chest and watching the sun dip lower and lower. "Toad?" she asked after a while.

"Mm?" I replied, kinda zoning out in the rare peace that I felt here. She sat up and looked down at me, letting me know she was serious again.

"You know that if you need someone ta talk to, 'bout this whole Wanda thing…" I sat up too, but only to lay my forearms against my upper thighs and look away.

"There's nothin' ta say, yo. You know what's goin' on." I heard her sigh, and closed my eyes. "I'll get over it. Or cope with it. Somehow." This kinda pain couldn't last for long; it'd kill a man if it did. I felt her hand on my back, and I turned to face her again. She bit her lip, then pulled me closer to her, so her lips could meet mine. I won't deny, it felt good. But I still remembered the instantaneous combustion of my heart when I had kissed Wanda just that one time, and this paled in comparison. Still, it was better than nothing. With Wanda back, maybe it was time for Tabby and I to rediscover our previous arrangement. But I didn't wanna be selfish and use her like that, so I pulled back. I inspected her eyes deeply, and saw what was really there. She knew I saw it, and looked away. "T?" I asked, and she was quiet for a long time. I didn't think she would answer me, but then she spoke so softly I could barely hear her.

"Kurt lost it to Amanda last night," it didn't take much explanation to understand what it was exactly that he lost to the girlfriend that replaced Tabby in his life. "I was in Kitty's room, 'n we heard them." Ouch. Now I understood. My right hand reached over across the both of us to cup her cheek, making her turn back to me. We stared at one another for a while, in perfect understanding of the other's situation. Then her lips crashed down on mine, and I surrendered.

* * *

><p>I made it back somewhere after midnight, and slipped into my room through the window well so I wouldn't get any shit from the others. I had just closed the window and fell silent to see if anyone was headed my way when I heard her. Two floors above me, Wanda was crying. I froze instantly, listening intently to make sure I was right. Wanda <em>never<em> cried. Not to my knowledge anyway. This would be the first time I had ever even thought that she was capable of tears. Every part of my mind was telling me to ignore it and get some rest, yet somehow I lingered near the window. My mind may have been screaming at me to go to bed, but the rest of me was aching to comfort her, to see what was wrong, what had happened, to go see her and be with her. My rational self argued that the last time I had slipped up to her room in the middle of the night she had hexed me into the face of death and left me there. Wanda didn't want me in her business, and would definitely be angry if I revealed I knew that she was upset enough to cry. With a sigh, I knew that my choice was already made for me. Silently, I eased back out of the window I had just climbed in and slinked up the side of the house. Again, I found myself hesitating on the roof peak just beneath her window, wondering if this was intelligent. Of course it wasn't; that's why I was doing it.

Peeking in first, I saw she had her back to me, curled into a ball on her bed, with her face to the wall. She was already in the dark red with black night dress that meant she didn't expect any company, especially mine. I entered without her noticing, but stayed in the moonlight that spilled through the window, ready to leap the second things started getting dangerous. Tabby wouldn't be here to save me this time. Wanda continued to weep softly, unaware of my presence. I didn't know how exactly to let her know I was there, so I stood for a moment before calling to her.

"Wanda?" my voice was barely a whisper, but in the crisp night she heard it easily enough. She jumped and whirled on me, hands glowing blue, ready to hex the shit outta the one who found her in such a state. I flinched, pulling my arms up to defend myself for what I knew was coming, only it never did.

"Toad?" she asked incredulously, letting the power around her fists fade as they unclenched. I peeked through my fingers at her, and saw that she wasn't glowing, so I lowered my arms. Upon better inspection, I saw that her eyes were red and moist, and there were tear stains down her face. She'd been crying for a while, then. "What are you doing here?" she asked in such a small, defeated voice it almost broke my heart. I took a step closer to her, and saw her jaw clench but nothing else, so I ventured another. Again, she did nothing to stop me.

"I- Well, I heard you, 'n uh. Jus' wanted ta, see if there's somethin' I could help with?" I could see her eyes brimming, but she was fighting it now that I was in the room. That got me, and I my shoulders slumped. "Awe Wanda, don't go playin' strong jus' 'cause I'm here. You don't have ta do that for me of all people," before I could think about it, I crossed the distance between us in seconds, wanting nothing more than to pull her into a hug but didn't know just how far I could push my luck. She watched me approach her and did nothing to tell me otherwise, but as I said that, I saw the liquid in her eyes well up, then overflow down her cheeks before she could turn away.

"Just go back to bed," she told me half-heartedly, pulling her legs up to her chest and wrapping her arms around them. I detected the wobble in her voice, and couldn't help myself. I softly put my arm around her shoulders, and pulled her to me. I thought that as soon as I touched the silky red that was her garment, I would be hexed out the window, but she didn't. I think I was just as surprised as she was at this point, since we both froze where we were. After a tense moment where I don't think I dared to even breathe, she relaxed into my hold, burying her face into my shoulder. "Y-you shouldn't be here," she whispered, and I held her tighter.

"I know you don't really want to see me, or want me here at all, b-" I stopped because she was shaking her head. Slowly she wiped her face before she pulled back from me. As soon as she did, my arms ached to bring her back to me and hold her again, but I resisted.

"Not what I meant," she confessed as she fought for composure. Finally, she looked right at me. "Toad, I've been _horrible_ to you. We both know that. I almost killed you the last time you were here in my room. You shouldn't want to be anywhere near me. Why are you here?" I stared at her for a long time, and I knew that the answer was written all over my face because I saw her eyes grow wet again, but she battled hard to keep them from falling. Finally she looked away again, and I found my tongue.

"Wanda," I started, putting my hand on hers, then drawing it back when she tensed up. "Uh, sorry. It's jus', I don't like seein' you like this. Usually I keep my distance from ya, 'cause I know you hate me, but when you're in pain, I can't help it. I care 'bout you too much to jus' let it happen," she relaxed again, and turned back to me. Her eyes looked so heartrending it hurt. "If I c'n help, _please,_ ya jus' gotta let me know. But if me bein' here makes it worse, I'll take off 'n leave you alone." It would kill me to do so, but if it helped her, I would leave.

"It's not you, Toad." That was good enough for me.

"Can ya tell me what it _is_?" I asked her, and her eyes glazed over again, before leaning against me. I couldn't believe she had actually chosen to touch me, but I said nothing, afraid to ruin it.

"It's just, when I was in Russia, I learned so much. I was getting the help I needed, in a way that was perfect for me. For the first time in my life, I was _happy._ And now….." I felt her clench her jaw, and when she continued there was a wobble in her voice. "and _now _I'm stuck here, with Mystique who only wants to use me against my own father, and I'm afraid I'll lose all the progress I made. But most of all, I just miss the home that I had. No one hated me, or feared me, or wanted to _use_ me. We were just….happy. All of us. And now I don't know if I'll ever see them again," wetness dampened my shirt to let me know that she had lost the battle and the tears had fought their way out, but she was silent about it, not making a sound. I slipped my arm around her again, and pulled her a little bit closer.

"Wanda, if it's the last thing I do, I'll help you get back there." I promised her, though I didn't know how the hell I would go about fulfilling that promise. But she was shaking her head again.

"No, I don't deserve you being nice to me. You should hate me! That's what I expect, it's what I've earned, and I don't know _why_ you're still here." Damn. What kinda learning did Agatha drill into her over in Russia? I'd never heard her even begin to talk like this before. I wasn't even sure how to respond, I had never seen this coming. So I was quiet for a long time, and she didn't move or say anything to disturb the silence for a waning stretch of time. Finally she pulled away, and I regrettably let her. "You…you should go to bed. It's late." Those words, spoken in that broken voice of hers, did something strange to me then.

"What's it gonna take for me ta show you: _I'm not leavin' you_. Not now, not ever. Even if I wanted ta get over you, I couldn't. Just accept that. I'm yours Wanda, for whatever you need me for. It doesn't matter what ya do ta me, I'm still gonna be here," I went to touch her hand, but stopped myself, putting mine back in my lap and dropped my head to look at the floor. She watched me for a second, then slowly reached over, and put her hand into mine, making me bring my gaze back up to search her face and eyes for some kinda trick. Instead she just looked….vulnerable. Fragile. A look I have never before seen, or even imagined possible on her. She hesitated for a second, then moved closer to me.

"Agatha taught me many things, when I was with her and actually listening," she started, holding my eyes steadily as she moved closer still "probably one of the most important lessons I learned from her were ones that were never actually taught, but shown. Regret, repentance, gratitude and learning to not shut out everyone who wants to get close," I forgot how to breathe just then, looking into her genuine sapphire eyes, her hand in mine, with her so close to me. Suddenly the familiar conflagrations ignited within my chest, blazing through my system and flooding me with fire instead of blood in my veins. My stomach had dropped down to hide somewhere in the core of the earth, just by the look she was giving me right then. "I don't deserve your forgiveness Toad, but I guess I should ask for it anyways." She whispered to me, and suddenly her other hand was laid gently on my face. This couldn't be happening. No way. This had to be a dream. I'd wake up soon, and have to face reality. This had to be a dream….didn't it?

Nope.

"Wanda," it was a miracle my throat could produce any noise at this point, since it had gone all tight and barely allowed any air to my own stupid lungs which refused to take it anyway. Instead, moving slowly in case this was a trick, or she changed her mind or something else happened to ruin this perfect moment for me like I expected, I gently slid my free arm around her waist. Her eyes fluttered, but she didn't stop me or even say anything to resist. Gradually, I brought her to me, feeling like my heart was going to explode at any minute from spontaneous combustion or beating too fast. We were face to face with scant inches between us when suddenly she slid the hand on my cheek back to brush my ear, then settle behind my head at the top of my neck.

Her eyes closed, then so did mine. My lips brushed hers, and I felt her sharp intake of breath before returning my kiss. Instantly every single nerve in my body exploded, my entire chest that had been engulfed in flames before was suddenly doused in polar ice water. I had imagined this moment time and time again, and yet, it was nothing as I had thought.

It was better.

* * *

><p>Thank you again to all the reviews! Especially to demonablackwolf! Keep 'em coming, I love the feedback.<p> 


	6. Chapter 6

Best. Dream. Ever. I had spent the night with Wanda, and she had told me all about the newfound depths of her powers, and what Agatha had been teaching her, while curled up in my arms or laying on my chest. I didn't even wanna open my eyes, because I knew that the dream would fade. It was then that I heard a soft exhale from my right, and froze. That wasn't Tabby. I knew Tabby's sounds, and that wasn't her. Instantly my eyes flew open, and at first I was blinded by the sunlight I wasn't expecting, spilling in from the open window across from me. My room doesn't have a window…..

Looking down, I felt myself freeze at the sight before me. Here she was, still in her nightdress from the night before, curled up next to me and contentedly still sleeping. Was I still dreaming? No, the light was far too bright for that. So that means that last night was…. _Real_?

No fucking way.

I guess something about me gave me away, because it was about then that she slowly stretched her pale limbs out and let her eyes flutter open. Groggily she looked around until she spotted me, which halted her process. I guess she was just as surprised as I was. I cringed and waited to be yelled at then hexed, but it never came.

"We fell asleep?" She asked me, and I nodded since I was too unsure of myself to offer up a vocal response. With one last stretch she pulled herself into a sitting position, and looked around. "What time is it?" I was able to pull my arm with the watch on it toward me, but yanking my gaze off of her long enough to read it was the hard part.

"'Bout nine." I answered her, and she yawned.

"If Agatha were here, she'd kill me. I don't think the jet lag excuse holds up for more than a week." There was a soft smile in the way she said this, which surprised me even more than before. She glanced at me then, holding something strange in her look. I wasn't sure what it was, but I knew it wasn't a bad thing. "C'mon, you should probably go get ready, and let me do the same." She stood as she said this, going to her wardrobe and hunting for clothes for the day.

I still couldn't get over the fact that I was in her room, and she was ok with it. Hell, she had been _cuddling_ with me for most of the night, and I didn't even get as much as a glare thrown my way.

"Uh, yeah." I managed, knowing full well how stupid I sounded as I stood up awkwardly. I just couldn't stop staring at her, not really knowing how to handle this situation. She turned to look at me after hearing my response, and raised an eyebrow at me. When she flicked her fingers my way, I flinched out of habit. After realizing that nothing had happened to me, I turned and saw the purple magic fading from the now open door to her room. Purple; that meant it was a spell, which meant neutral emotions. Hey, maybe I did retain some information unlike my teachers had said. I just had to care about the subject. When I looked back at her, she seemed to be giving me a sad look and I wondered what I had done wrong.

"Toad I," she started, but didn't finish. She put down the clothes that were in her hands and approached me slowly. "I'm sorry." She told me somberly, biting her lip as she looked at me.

"For what? Wanda you don't have ta 'plogize ta me for anythin'." I told her with a shrug, but she shook her head.

"Yeah, Toad, I do. I'm sorry for everything I've done. I was just so _angry_, and I didn't know how to handle it. Now I know that I handled it badly, and I'm sorry. Maybe, one day you'll forgive me?" I looked at her then with a question on my face.

"There's nothin' ta forgive, yo. I mean, uh….sorry." I realized I had relapsed into my old way of speaking in her absence, but she just waved it off.

"You still flinch whenever I use my power." Oh, _that's _what this was about.

"Jus' a habit, is all." I told her with a shrug, but she still looked distraught. She reached for me, and put her hand into mine as she was about to say something, but was interrupted by Lance who was coming up the stairs towards her room.

"Hey Wanda, Mystique told me to come get you. She wants you to go and report to her in her office in an hour-" Lance was cut off as blue hex magic snaked out the door and found its target as Lance was heard being pushed back down the stairs.

"Tell Mystique I'll be there when I'm good and ready!" Wanda retorted, sending a spell of purple magic to slam the door. With a sigh she looked back at me. "You should go. I _do_ have to get geared up and…" It didn't have to be said out loud. I knew she didn't want to be seen with me in her room at all, let alone at such an early hour with her still in her nightdress.

"Yeah," I said, nodding and heading for the window.

"Toad?" Wanda called softly, making me stop and look at her. She had that look on her face again. I gave her a quizzical gaze in return and she just smiled softly. "Thank you." I smiled back at her with that.

"Anytime, Babycakes." I told her, using one of my old nicknames for her. She scowled playfully and sent purple spell magic at me, which pulled my shirt up and over my head. I just laughed and vaulted out her window to the peak of roof below her room, then slid down the drainage pipe far enough until I could leap off. It was purple, meaning she meant no harm from it. Again I tried to pull from my memory what she had told me from last night.

Purple was a spell, which needed neutral emotions. Closing a door or moving something, mostly. Blue was a hex, which used negative emotions and the easiest for her to use. Throwing things, stealing powers, stuff like that. Red would be a curse, which only came from hatred or other ugly emotions like that, and were the most damaging. Wanda had told me she had been working on perfecting that when we had showed up in Russia. And the last one….pink. That was a charm, which took only love or other extremely strong positive emotions. No wonder she had yet to perform one successful charm, it would be difficult for her to manage those emotions.

I was lost in thoughts like these as I dressed for the day, which is why I didn't think twice before opening my door like I usually did. It was rigged to spill a bucket of cold water all over me as I exited, compliments of one of the Brotherhood boys. I had yet to cool down their animosity towards me from the Russian trip and they still went out of their way to make living that much harder for me.

"Ah, c'mon! That ain't right!" I shouted as it drenched me, and I heard Lance's laugh from somewhere up the stairs.

"You-know-that-you-need-a-bath-Toad. We-just-helped-you-along-is-all."' Pietro said as he magically appeared to be leaning against the wall to my right. I attempted to spit some of my slime at him, but he dodged it, letting it land on the wall behind him and he then went to lean on the wall to my left. "It's-not-that-bad-of-a-thing-really-if-you-think-about-it."

"Yeah, Pietro, it's a real gift." I told him, my voice heavy with sarcasm and I pulled off my clinging, damp shirt and headed back into my room to change. Again. Pietro was laughing and about to speed off when he stopped and looked around.

"Hey-what's-that-smell?" He asked, sniffing the air intently. I looked up, and met his gaze. His eyes widened in understanding. "That's _you?"_ I only shrugged in response. "But it's…_sweet._" His surprise showed clearly on his face as he watched me, dumbstruck. I shrugged again.

"When my skin gets wet, it secrets a scent kinda like peppermint." I replied, while still searching for a new shirt. "So what, yo? It's just part of my mutant thing I guess." Pietro just stared at me for a long time until a turned to glare at him. "What?" I demanded.

"Nothing!" He finally responded, then sped up the stairs. I guess they had never been around me when I was soaking, but still why was he so surprised? Oh well. Finally I located another shirt that was almost close to clean and made a second attempt at leaving my room and rummaging through the house for some food. Blob and Lance were giving me weird looks, and Pietro was nowhere to be seen.

"What?" I shouted at them, but they only shrugged and went back to what they were doing. Whatever, I was hungry and didn't really care about them anyways. Usually I would have headed back to my room after a bowl of cereal, being it Sunday and having nothing to do and all, but for some reason I felt rejuvenated. I didn't want to go back to sleep just then. I thought about calling Boom Boom, but decided against it. She was probably still sleeping, or worse training with the X-Geeks. Finally I decided to just walk around. The world out there had to be way less hostile than the one in here, why not give it a shot? What's the worst that could happen?

* * *

><p>The sun was dipping behind the horizon by the time I stumbled back in. Lance had to take a double look at me, then he spat out the water he was drinking.<p>

"What happened to _you_?" I just moved passed him, not wanting to talk about it. I knew he wouldn't care enough to follow me back to my room, and so that's where I was headed. I shut and locked the door behind me before looking for a mirror. Upon glancing at myself, I winced.

A black eye decorated the right side of my face, though it was hardly noticed under all the mud and twigs strewn through my hair. My shirt and jeans were ripped in several places, most of these earning anything from a shallow cut to an oozing wound beneath the open clothes. I felt exhausted, and almost just wanted to collapse in my bed, without changing or anything. I actually thought about it for a minute, but then with a defeated sigh I realized I wouldn't like to wake up to all this in my bed so I decided to give myself a half a shot at cleaning up.

Half an hour and a spare change of clothes later, I finally relinquished myself to my bed, and hardly even winced upon contact. Right before falling asleep, two thoughts crossed my mind. One: Why was I _always_ the target? There were other mutants out there, but even those seemed to see some kinda target painted all over my sorry ass. And Two: I wondered where Wanda was, what Mystique had needed her for, and if she would regret the way she had been acting toward me the next time I saw her.

Somewhere around what I guessed to be 2 am, I heard something that pulled me outta dead sleep, and caused a soft smile to light on my lips. The squealing of tires alerted me to her presence, and the sharp click of her boots only warned me even more. Something in my groggy mind was pulling at my attention, but I ignored it. Boom Boom was always up to something about now, and I was only slightly surprised to hear her heading my way. Wait, didn't the mansion keep a tight hold on their students on school nights? About then is when I realized her gait was all wrong, which worried me farther. Sitting up in my bed, I listened harder.

_Tap. Tap tap. _

This wasn't Boom Boom. Gingerly I pulled myself outta my bed and towards the door, feeling anxiety fill me as to what I would find on the other side. Had Wanda found out something that upset her? Did she come down here to hex me personally? Was everything ok? I opened the door slowly, letting my eyes fall on her through the darkness.

"Can….can I come in?" She asked, and I nodded. Her voice was softer than what I was expecting, but her fists were clenched and she had a familiar anger about her that I knew well. Stepping away from the door I opened it and allowed her to enter. She didn't offer a second glance to the clothes and whatever else happened to be strewn everywhere, just went straight to my bed.

"Hey, you ok?" I asked her, going to sit by her. Stupid question, I know but I didn't know what else to say. She was glaring daggers at my wall, and finally something in her control snapped because the chair that had been hidden under a pile of clothes and God knows what else was surrounded by blue magic and thrown at the wall she was staring at with such force it was embedded in the drywall. Strangest thing was she didn't even move her hands. She let out a sigh and put her head in her hands. I didn't dare touch her, or make another other indication that I was there, for fear of that power turning on me. Finally she looked back up at the wall.

"Sorry." She told me in a flat voice, and made a tugging motion at the chair as purple spell magic surrounded it. Slowly it pulled from the wall and settled back on the floor.

"'S all good." I told her, still cautious with all I did and said. "What happened, can I ask?" Her fists tightened again, and I saw her jaw clench and unclench and almost regretted asking. I went to apologize, but then she relaxed her hands and went back to staring at the floor beneath her.

"Been with Mystique all day." Oh. Well that made sense. Anyone would wanna send a chair through a basement wall after that. But she continued, saying "I found out why she sent you after me, why she pulled me back here from Russia. It's Magneto."

"Uh oh." I blurted out without thinking. I hadn't meant to say it out loud, but she barely heard me, only nodded in agreement. Last night she had told me of all the progress she had made with Agatha on getting over her hatred for her father, and now Mystique was digging up old memories, playing with a fire that was on its way to being quenched. She was quiet for a long time, then finally she seemed to cool off enough to look at her surroundings.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know what time it was. And I didn't really know where else to go…." It was then that she risked a glance at my face, and her eyes widened in surprise. "Oh my God, what happened to _you_?" I tried to smile, then winced.

"Ya know, you're the second person to say that ta me today. I'm startin' ta think somethin's wrong with me." I joked, but she was now taking in the rest of me with worried eyes. I shrugged at her and looked away. "I went for a walk today. Ran into a couple of humans who don't think mutants're a good thing. 'N maybe they were a bit aggressive with how they showed it." Wanda let out an angry sigh, and gently pulled my face back to looking at her. She was chewing her lip, so I stayed quiet to let her think.

"Can I…..may I try something?" She asked me, and I nodded without thinking. "I want to, well, try to help. But…I don't know. Maybe I should practice on something else first."

"Fine by me." I told her with a smile, but she was already looking at the hole in the wall that she had made with my chair. Getting up she went to it, pushing the chair outta the way and pulling what looked like a large crystal from a compartment in her ankh necklace. "D'ya need me ta do anythin'?" I asked, interested in how a charm worked. She shook her head as she held the long, thin crystal in her hand and closed her eyes.

"No, just try to stay quiet." Easy enough. She inhaled deeply, and put her hands palm up. Soon the crystal wobbled, then pulled up to levitate a few inches above her open hands, and spin slowly. Pink light spilled from her hands and into the crystal, which shot the magic out and seemed to be focusing on the wall. Parts of it were beginning to pull back out of the hole created by the chair. Slowly, pieces from the floor flew back into their places. This was astonishing to me. Then I saw the crystal begin to wobble in its rotation, leaning from the left to the right. Right lights were ejected here and there, scorching whatever they touched. Wanda furrowed her brow, trying to regain her focus but I could tell it was only going downhill. The crystal started to spin faster and faster, and the rogue red lights became bigger. One black one leaked out and melted the door to my wardrobe like it was butter. Right about then is when the hole in the wall that had been healing started glowing red, then exploded outwards towards her.

Wanda was blown all the way back to the bed, and the hole in the wall was now twice as big as it was before. Her magic had even torn away some of the cement, which was now embedded in the opposite wall above my bed. She let out an aggravated noise, and glared at the now still crystal she held in her hand.

"You ok?" I asked her, which brought her gaze to me. It was angry at first, but upon watching me for a moment, it softened as well as the grip she had the crystal in.

"Yeah, I'm fine, thanks." She told me, though her voice was bitter. She slid the crystal back into its spot in her ankh necklace, then turned to face me. "I'm sorry-" She tried to start, but I cut her off.

"Don't be. You wanna learn, I get it, yo. But uh, maybe I should jus' let my body heal itself for now." She nodded in agreement, with a sheepish look at the wall. "You feelin' any better?" I asked her with a grin, and she let a smile touch her lips for a moment.

"Actually, yeah. Yeah I am." She turned to look at me, softness in her eyes again. "Thanks." I felt a blush creeping up to color my cheeks green, and I looked away. She leaned back against the wall behind my bed, and I risked a glance at her.

"Y'know, you can stay here, if you want." It took all the courage I could muster to offer up that invitation, but I had to throw it out there. She looked at me, trying to discern my thoughts or intentions off of my face. When she realized it was just an invitation for her to stay while she was upset, she smiled. I didn't think I'd ever see that directed at me.

"You don't mind?" She asked, and I shook my head quickly. Hesitantly, she let her head lean down on my shoulder. It was tense at first, but then we both relaxed and it became natural. "Thank you." She said quietly after a while.

"For what?" I asked, and I felt her hand slip into mine.

"Everything. For being here when I need someone. For not hating me, even when I deserved it." I felt her let out a deep exhale and she relaxed even more into my hold. "For being so accepting and open. I'm sorry I didn't see that before, when I was blinded by my own hatred." I didn't know what to say to that, so I stayed quiet. "If you want me to leave I c-"

"No, no stay. I mean, if you want. You can stay as long as you like." She turned to look up at me, to make sure I was telling the truth. She sat up, and I wondered if I had said the wrong thing and if she would leave anyways. Instead she just watched me for a long time, then seemed almost shy. It was this look that had my heart beating faster than should have been possible, and the familiar rush of adrenaline swept through me. "Wanda?" I asked, and she looked up at me. I felt my stomach drop again, and my throat closed. It's crazy what kinda things this witch could do to me without ever touching her powers. Just as it became ridiculously difficult to breathe, she let one had return to slip into mine, and leaned towards me. Maybe last time wasn't a mistake. Maybe I didn't dream it, or hallucinate it or whatever else I could have done. Maybe she didn't regret it. Maybe…. About then my thought process halted and my mind froze. Something took over me and I felt my free hand moving to cup her face. She didn't flinch away as I expected, and her skin felt delicate and smooth beneath my palm. Her eyes fluttered, which made my heart do the same, then her beautifully blue eyes locked on mine. Slowly she moved towards me, as if hesitant or scared. Seconds later, her fire spread through my veins, igniting my limbs and spreading to fill every ounce of me. I felt our lips touch, and instantly a chill swept through my spine. I could feel each nerve reach for her and I kissed her back. Soon I felt her free hand at the back of my neck and I tilted my head back as she kneeled over me, one leg on each side. I'm sure I must have had a heart attack somewhere in there, but it didn't matter to me, because she was kissing me.

_Wanda was kissing __**me**_!

All too soon, she pulled away shyly, and I tried to get my brain working again.

"I should go to bed. School tomorrow…" She was saying softly, though she was smiling as she said it. Her hand was still holding onto mine, and I could still feel the remnants of her lips on mine. "Thank you again. For everything." Slowly she pulled herself away from me, then off of the bed. The last thing she did was release my hand, but the she hesitated. For one second, she bit her bottom lip softly, then leaned in. Once more her full lips brushed mine, which should have sent my body into cardiac arrest from all it did to my heart. But her kiss was soft and sweet, and regrettably short. "Goodnight Todd." I heard her whisper

"Goodnight Wanda." I whispered back as she left, and I lay back in my bed, staring up at the ceiling. It didn't matter that the Brotherhood hated me, or that it seemed almost all the humans in this town had it out for me. I didn't care about that, I wasn't thinking about the pain I should be feeling from the day's adventures. I was only thinking about one thing as my fingers absently went to my lips.

_She called me Todd. _

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><p>A huge thank you to Xx .Cougar. xX, ToNdA, mysteryrouge29. Without comments or subscriptions, I have no will to conitnue write, so thank you for showing me that my work is read and liked! :) PLEASE keep the comments coming. I LOVE to hear them, and it keeps me inspired. Thank you!<p> 


	7. Chapter 7

By the time I got to school, I didn't know what to expect. Half the time Wanda was never even here, and when she was she made it a point to avoid me. But what with all the strange things happening between us recently, I have to admit I was oddly optimistic. I knew her schedule better than my own, and found a way of making my path cross hers whenever possible.

"Hey Slick!" I head a familiar, bubbly voice call to me. Turning, I smiled at her and gave her my own greeting. "Whatcha up to?" Instead of answering, I turned my head when I heard the door I had been staking out open. A few faceless students poured out before she did. She wasn't looking for me, and Tabby saw her before she saw us.

"Awe, c'mon Toad, not this again."

"Tabs, it's not what you think," I told her, though my eyes never left Wanda.

"She's nuts Toad! I know you don't wanna hear it, but you need to. 'N you stalking her is just downright creepy. We need to find you a new hobby. Maybe somethin' like track or knitting or- Uh oh." Tabitha left off on her list of insane replacements for my quest after Wanda on account of Wanda looking our way and catching us staring at her. "Get outta here, _now_! I'll try 'n keep her from you long enough for you to get away." I wasn't listening, and I definitely wasn't moving.

When her eyes met mine, my heart leapt into my throat and I felt my mouth go dry. She was coming our way, headed to her next class which would force her to pass right by us. Both Tabitha and I shut up instantly as she came nearer, me because I had lost all rights to my voice box upon sight of Wanda, Tabby because she was worried and ready for action. I searched Wanda's face for any sign of violence, anger or even mild interest, but she kept it perfectly calm. When she drew parallel with us, she didn't even pause, though kept her eyes on us.

"Hey Toad. Tabitha," she said, nodding to both of us with a flick of recognition in her eyes, then went on about her way, ignoring us completely. I couldn't wipe the grin off my face, especially when I saw that Tabitha's jaw had dropped.

"What the _hell_?" Tabby gave me the strangest of looks for a moment while trying to recover. "She noticed you. I mean, like without tryin' ta kill you or anythin'. She said '_HEY'_, Toad. Wanda does NOT say '_hey'_ to anyone, least of all you. What the **HELL**?" But I had no answer for her, since she was only reiterating everything that was buzzing through my head at that moment. The only difference was the pure joy I felt was replaced by wonderment and shock on her part.

"I dunno Tabs, but I'm sure gonna find out," I told her with a smile and a shrug.

I followed Wanda for most of the day, but she barely seemed to notice me. This was a huge improvement over shooting death glares and hexes at me, like she used to, but maybe I had been too optimistic before. As the day wore on, I felt more and more like she had decided to put me into the background, now that she had addressed a regret in her past like some type of coping method or something. By lunch break, I didn't even expect her to look my way when I was leaning against the wall outside of her class. Still, some undying part of me hoped and yearned for even just one glance, to show that she knew I existed.

She was the last out of the classroom, and at first her eyes grazed right over me. I let out a sigh, and slowly she turned back to me, bringing all my hopes back to the surface and I'm sure all over my face. With a quick glance around, she made sure that we were alone, then stopped. I didn't wait for an invitation and within a span of one breath I was by her side. She sighed, shook her head slightly, and continued moving forward.

"Toad, what are you doing?" Her tone wasn't harsh, more reserved or resigned than anything.

"What I usually do," I responded with a shrug, and I caught her glancing at me sideways before another voice interrupted us.

"Following her around like a lost puppy dog with no life?" Lance drawled which made us both turn to inspect him as he leaned against the wall.

"What do _you_ want?" Wanda hissed at him, narrowing her eyes and glaring at him in a way that I remembered all too well. What did Wanda have against Lance? He only smirked at her response, then flicked his eyes to me.

"Toads don't belong in adult conversations. Run along now." He made a shooing motion with one arm before crossing them both over his chest.

"Hey man, I _belong_ wherever the hell I choose to stand, 'n right now that's beside her," I shot back at him, and he only rolled his eyes. Before he could say or do anything, Wanda interjected.

"Lance, what is it you want? Just spit it out and crawl back to where you came from." I didn't like the way he looked at her after she said that, and I tensed up in case he followed through with whatever he was thinking of. He looked the Scarlet Witch up and down, then decided against it. Instead he sighed and dropped his arms, coming to an upright position and walking to stand right in front of us.

"Look, you don't have to get all worked up or nothin', I'm just here to deliver a message." His eyes were on Wanda's until then, which then shifted to glare at me. "To _her_, and no one else." I inhaled, readying for a retort, but Wanda put a hand on my arm. This alone shocked me into silence, and when I met her eyes they weren't angry or demanding.

"Toad, it's just Lance it's not like he can do anything," I heard Lance growl at her offhand remark, but she continued. "I'll meet up with you in the court yard in a few. Catch you there?" I couldn't deny Wanda asking anything from me, especially it if involved me seeing her again.

"Yeah, sure thing, yo." I shot one last glare at Lance before taking off towards our predetermined destination to wait. Why was Lance being such a dick? That was usually Pietro's forte. And what did he want with Wanda? I didn't have too long to think about it before the object of my desire was walking towards me. She had a darkness in her face, but I could tell she was trying to hide it. "Wanda?" I asked, standing as she approached me. She shook her head at me.

"It's nothing, don't worry about him." For all she said it was nothing, she wouldn't look me in the eyes and she seemed several times more agitated than before Lance had showed up.

"It's not him I'm worried about," I told her quietly, then looked away. I would drop it, if only because I knew that tone in her voice, and I knew not to push the matter. She wouldn't tell me, and I'd just end up irritating her more, and that's not what she needed. I could feel her eyes on me, and couldn't keep mine away from her for long. When I looked back she seemed pensive, but then hid it as soon as our eyes met.

"C'mon, I have to go before class starts again." I followed her back to her next class, where she hesitated outside of the door.

"Wanda?" I ventured as she put her hand out for the handle. She hesitated, though didn't turn to look at me. I almost chickened out of saying it, but then told myself that if I wanted things to change, I'd have to initiate it. "You know that if you need anythin' from me, you just have to say it." This made her catch my eyes as she searched them for something. She let her hand drop, and closed her eyes.

"I know," she admitted softly, then opened her eyes again. "And I thank you for that. But I can take care of myself." Again I had to fight with myself before deciding to say anything more.

"Jus' 'cause you can doesn't mean you have to, or should; not all the time." I shrugged, and looked down at my feet. That was enough talking for now; I didn't wanna push my luck with her. It was then that I felt a feather-soft hand on my shoulder, and looked up. She was smiling at me kindly, if not with a bit of sorrow behind it. It made my heart skip a beat and suddenly I had to remind myself how to inhale.

"Thank you. Really, I mean it." Then her hand was back on the handle to her class, and no longer touching me. "I'll see you back at the House," she told me then with a wave she was gone. With nothing else to do, I decided to attend my own class in an attempt to make the day pass faster, though a lot of good that did me. All the happened was the human kids, and even the X-Geeks, tossed nasty looks my way. Let them, I didn't care. My mind was elsewhere.

The next few days passed this way, more or less. The only reason I went to school was for her, and when she did come I made sure to be at every class she went to. Every once in a while, when no one was looking, she would make eye contact with me and once I thought I even saw a ghost of a smile on her lips. But every time I tried to approach her when people were around a bit of the old Wanda would surface. Granted, it wasn't as violent before, but it was enough to keep us both entertained. Getting shoved into a locker wasn't half as bad when Wanda did it, especially compared to Duncan. The one thing that did bother me was that the personal visits had stopped. She hadn't come down to my room, and I hadn't been exactly invited to go up to her room, in over a week of this routine. Still, I held out hoping that she would let me be there for her again in the future. Tabby, however, wasn't nearly as optimistic as I was.

"Toad, she's probably playing some game," she told me from a tree I was sitting under one day after school. "You know that you can't trust her."

"No, I don't know that," I pointed out, looking up to see her legs dangling over the branch right above me. "T, what if she actually did change? I mean think 'bout it, yo. She was with that Harkens woman for how long? She learned a lot, I've seen it in her powers. So why couldn't she learn this?" Tabby leaned over to look down at me. At first there was a stubbornness to her face, then she sighed.

"For your sake, I hope you're right. But you know that things don't usually work out like this, right?" Of course I knew. And with that knowledge, I was still hoping against all odds that this was real. I was praying to a God I didn't believe in that Wanda might finally accept me as what I had been all along: Hers.

"Yeah, I know."

"Can I walk with you back to your place?" I knew what she was actually saying. The Brotherhood was still on my case. It was hard to believe that this was continuing on from the Russia trip, but I had nothing else to go off of. There were getting relentless with their attempts, and going alone into that house was always a toss up for me now. When Tabby went with me she would walk with me down to my room and stay with me for a while before leaving. For some reason this seemed to keep their animosity down to a bearable level, so she did it whenever possible.

"Maybe one day I won't have to rely on other people to fight my battles," I remarked sourly, standing up as she jumped down from her perch.

"Awe, c'mon you know it's not like that!" I rolled my eyes, but when she flashed that bright smile at me, lit by that crazy light in her eyes, I had to smile back. "Now let's go. I'm _starving_!"

"And you think that there's food back at the House? I mean real food, yo. Not that nasty shit that Blob finds edible." She just laughed and linked her arm through mine as we walked. As soon as we got there though, we knew there had been trouble. There was still smoke coming out from the open front door, a hole that had once been a wall, and Wanda was standing on the porch alone with her back to us.

"Uh, I'll see ya at school tomorrow, 'kay Slick?" Tabby asked quietly, not wanting to go near Wanda when she was like this.

"Yeah, I'll catch you later. Thanks for the walk." She gave her two-fingered salute, but her heart wasn't in it and her eyes were on the Scarlet Witch. She knew this was dangerous territory for me to be walking into. Wanda had her back to me, staring off into the distance, so I stopped a good ten feet behind her. "Wanda?" I asked quietly, but she solicited no response. My rational brain told me to leave her to it, walk away and leave her alone. So of course I took a few steps toward her, hesitating before addressing her again. "What happened?" She was rigid and silent for a long time, long enough that I thought she was going to ignore me until I left. That was, until the window next to her shattered. "That bad huh?" I remarked, and finally she turned around.

There was a burning fire of hatred in her eyes that I hadn't seen in a long time, but knew instantly the second I saw it. She had been face to face with Magneto recently. As she looked at me I felt the wood under our feet tremble and I knew if she didn't calm down soon, we would both regret it.

"He came _here_, to this house. _He_ was looking for _me_." Her voice shook with loathing, and I could see sparks of a deep scarlet red gathering around her clenched fists.

"What did he want?" I asked, taking another slow step towards her. She didn't even notice, since now she was looking away but still shaking with rage. After her silence, I realized that she wasn't about to tell me. Instead I went with a different question. "What about the others? Blob, Lance, Pietro; where are they?"

"Ran, like the cowards they are. Probably went crawling to Mystique." The name was spat out like acid poison from her mouth, and more flashes of red started to form around her.

"And…?" I wasn't about to say his name, but she understood.

"Gave me an ultimatum. I made my choice, and it wasn't the one he wanted. Then I made him leave." Whoa. Wait. _What? _NOBODY made Magneto do ANYTHING, ever. That was that. But here was Wanda, his estranged daughter, the last-man-standing at a location he had chosen to approach her on. Maybe I had been underestimating everything that she had learned with Agatha. While I was lost in my thoughts, I guess Wanda was lost in her own because out of nowhere she snarled, pulled her arms up and hurled the pent up anger out of her in the form of a blindingly ruby curse across the space directly in front of her.

When I could see again, I first noticed the gigantic crater that used to be the road and the field across from it. It looked as if the Earth had ripped itself open, spewed lava everywhere, closed then got sucked partly into a black hole. I know my jaw dropped open, but when I turned to look at Wanda my heart twisted nastily inside of me. She was sitting on her knees, holding herself off the porch with one hand while she hugged the upper half of her torso with the other one.

"C'mon, let's get you inside," I said softly to her, hesitating only a second before sliding my arm around her back and the other under her knees. She made no move to resist; she barely even moved at all. I took her to her room, setting her on the bed before going back to close the door and the shades to the window. When I turned back around to see her, I felt a lump grow in my throat. She looked so defeated, so fragile. She was staring off into nothing, as if she had become an empty husk. "Wanda," I whispered softly under my breath. It broke my heart to see her like this. I went to sit by her, not really knowing what to do. I had finally built up the courage to say something when she turned to look at me.

She seemed hesitant, but something in her eyes was desperate, clawing to get out. I locked my gaze with hers, keeping an open expression to let her know as much as I could convey without words. Still, she was holding back. Slowly, I brought my arms up and held them out to her as an open invitation. She watched me blankly for a minute, then pulled herself towards me, letting my arms wrap around her as she laid her head against my chest and shoulders. We stayed like this for what could have been hours, content with one another's company without needing words. I could feel her fall into sleep, exhausted from the day's trials. When I was sure she was out cold, I laid her head on a pillow and pulled a light blanket up around her. For a moment I wondered if I should leave, but decided against it. I wouldn't want her to wake up alone, when she did wake up. Instead I settled myself at the top of her bed, putting her pillow in my lap and thus her head along with it. I watched her sleep and sighed, thinking on how much I wished I could take away all of her pain. Somewhere in there I must have dozed off too, since I woke with a start after the sun had set. My acute hearing picked up a sound I knew all too well: Trouble. And it was headed my way.

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><p>Thank you SOOOOO much to demonablackwolf, pointyearsrule, Leo Delkin, and AlvaBlueFyre for being my inspiration! You truly don't know how much it means to me to hear from you And I chose to elaborate of Toad's mutation and add the peppermint smell for a couple of reasons. One, to toss something new in there and two, because he's always seen as grungy and dirty. Just wanted to put a spin on it. The Brotherhood isn't exactly on the good side, but neither are they totally evil. Just…morally challenged. Any other questions I'd be more than happy to clear up. Comments are ALWAYS appreciated!<p> 


	8. Chapter 8

Before I had time to react, Pietro was in her room, standing in front of us, glaring down at me. I put a defensive hand on Wanda's shoulder, which only brought deeper fire to his scathing glower. She slept soundly, for all the tension that filled the air between Pietro and I. He stood there for a minute, probably wondering how to get me outta there without waking up his sister. It was about then that in her sleep, she inhaled deeply, furrowed her eyebrows and muttered something that sounded dangerously like my name. That was enough to throw Pietro over the edge. Before I knew what was happening, I was down in the basement with the Brotherhood boys around me and a splitting pain shooting up my back.

"You-do-you-think-you-_are-_you-disgusting-little-toad?" demanded Pietro.

"What's it to you, yo?" I asked as I attempted to stand up. Blob took this as a sign to propel one of his viciously large fists into my chest, shoving me back to the floor with more force than necessary.

"Stay away from Wanda," hissed Lance, and I turned to glare at him.

"What I do for her never bothered you before, why now? What the hell's goin' on?" A split second later I was picked up and held against the back wall.

"You're-not-the-one-asking-questions-here-Slimeball-that's-us-got-it?" He dropped me and sped back to his place before I could even answer him.

"Ok, really yo, what the fuck? You guys never cared 'bout me goin' after Wanda before. What gives?"

"This is your only, and last, warning Toad. Drop Wanda, _now_. That's not a request." Again a darker side of Lance surfaced that I had never seen before. I met his gaze stubbornly only to get a chair thrown at me by Blob. I jumped over it, but just barely. When I landed back on the ground again, I looked over all three of them. My rational mind told me that the odds were against me, and to tell them whatever they wanted to hear, even if it wasn't true. So, of course, I told them the God honest truth.

"Wanda is the only thing I have t' hold onto, 'n I'm not lettin' go just 'cause a buncha punks're gettin' jealous." Where the hell did I find these balls? Because I certainly hadn't had them before. But it was just the thought of even letting someone think I had given up on Wanda that had a new rigidity in my spine. I saw Lance's lip curl, then his eyes rolled into the back of his head just as the ground started to tremble.

"You shoulda listened to us Toad!" called Blob as I leapt up onto a wardrobe in attempts to make my way to the stairs and outside before Lance could bring the house down around us. As I went to make my jump to the stairs, Pietro intercepted me and threw me back down to the floor just as huge slabs of concrete started falling from the ceiling.

"Lance-knock-it-off-Mystique'll-kill-us-if-we-mess-up-her-house-anymore!" Pietro was shouting, but Lance didn't seem to hear him. My eyes were on the ceiling, looking for things to dodge, therefore I didn't see Blob pick up the wardrobe I had recently been on top of and throw it at me. It hit me hard and pinned me to the back wall as I felt the air get knocked outta me. I was struggling to pull it off of me, and finally knocked it aside in my frantic attempt to get my ass outta there when one giant chunk of concrete from the ceiling was freed by Lance's quake. I saw it one second too late, and next thing I knew I was looking up, pinned from my waist down to the floor by a massive heap of pain. The shaking stopped, and I blinked to clear my pain-blurred vision. Pietro was standing over me with his arms crossed and a sneer smeared across his pale face.

"Hopefully-_this_-lesson-will-stick-in-that-thick-skull-of-yours," he spat out, then his eyes grew dark. "Last warning, Toad. Stay. _AWAY. _From. Wanda. Got it?" He didn't wait for an answer, instead zipped upstairs to leave me stranded there with the bone-crushing mass weighing down my lower half.

I guess I didn't freak out from the beginning because in my head, I'd been through worse. It wasn't until the thick pool of my own blood had trickled all the way up and reached my hands that I started to panic. Ok, I'd never been squeamish but there was _a lot_ of blood. My head started to swim, and I could feel the adrenaline that was starting to fill my system. 'That's not good' I thought to myself, knowing that the increased heart rate would only pump more of my precious red liquid out of me to stain the floor I was pinned against. The only thing I could think of was Wanda, so at first I didn't really trust my ears when I thought I heard her voice.

"…do whatever I** WANT** _Pietro!_" A crash let me know that she had thrown him away from whatever he was blocking her access to. I wanted to be glad that Pietro was getting some form of karma, but all that was really clear in my head was that I didn't want Wanda to see me like this, and I hoped she didn't come downstairs. My vision was starting to swell, then buckle, with the black ebbing in from the sides as I recognized her presence. "Toad?" she called as she descended the stairs, probably not being able to see me as the section of the ceiling that had trapped me was impairing her line of sight. Part of me yearned to call out to her, but suddenly I had no idea how to access my voice. "Toad!" She'd found me.

I felt rather than saw her crouch down next to me. Next thing I know, my captor was covered by purple spell magic and thrown off of me and I was being leaned up against the back wall. "Oh my God," I heard her gasp and knew that I shouldn't look down. "I'll kill them, I swear to God I'll kill them." Something about her presence thawed my state of mind. I found myself reaching out to her, and she took my hand. That was enough to help me find my voice again.

"Wanda," I started but she shook her head. She was chewing her lip and her eyes looked worried. Finally her gaze met mine, and I felt chills erupt across what I could still feel of my body.

"Do you trust me?" she asked, her stare intent on my face. I couldn't help but smile, even though she had the most serious look about her.

"'Course I do, Poopsie." I must have been delirious, because not only had I used an old nickname for her that she hated, but it seemed like she didn't even notice. She only nodded, and took a deep breath as she closed her eyes.

"I need you to stay very still, and very quiet." She told me as her hands reached up to pull the crystal out of the compartment in her ankh necklace. Uh oh. I watched with anticipation as she took it out and put it in her palms, hands up. I was about to object, when I decided that my probably couldn't get much worse anyways, so I kept my mouth shut and watched her work.

The crystal started to glow a soft pink, then slowly levitated into the air above her palms. It revolved at a patient pace, letting the light spill from its many sides and drift softly down to settle on me. I knew I shouldn't watch it because that would mean taking inventory of my own shock-inducing injuries, but I couldn't help but be fascinated by it. I watched it nestle softly into my torn and crumpled form, trying hard to ignore how sick my own body looked to me. Absently I wondered if I would have to get a wheel chair, and part of me thought about stealing Professor X's sweet ride, but I pushed it from my head as Wanda continued to work.

It was slow at first, but eventually I felt something that could only be described as a cool, liquidy cotton candy feeling begin to spread everywhere that her charm had seeped into. I held my breath, hoping that this would work and I wouldn't end up like the hole in my wall had. Just as I was beginning to think it would be ok, I caught the crystal starting to wobble. It was insignificant at first, then with each rotation it grew more and more off-kilter. The first bolt of red magic was shot behind Wanda and left a scorch mark on the wall supporting the stairs. I saw her brows furrow and she bit her bottom lip, attempting to remain focused on the task that was so hard for her; summoning strong positive emotions. The second shock of red lightning zipped past the right side of her face, barely missing her to find purchase on a piece of concrete which then became dust.

"Wanda," I called softly, going against her will of silence and with my own instinct. I placed my right hand on her leg that was closest to me, and kept my gaze fixed on her face. Her eyes fluttered open and caught mine, and for a moment it seemed as if she was confused. Her sapphire eyes locked onto mine and her breathing steadied. She kept her hands still, palm-up to support the revolving crystal, but I knew all of her attention was on me. Just like that, the crystal stopped wobbling and slowed its pace of spinning, returning to the slow peaceful tempo she had given it in the beginning. Again I felt the caress of her charm working its way through me, but I did nothing that would pull my eyes from hers. When the soothing sensation had worked its way from my waist all the way down to my toes, I felt it swell inside of me and reach out tendrils to every part, attempting to heal everything it could. This only lasted a few breathless seconds, then there was a distinct flash from the crystal which drew all the pink light back into it and out of me as I exhaled. Slowly, it stopped spinning, then descended to again rest in Wanda's upturned palms. We both stayed perfectly still, barely daring to breathe, just watching one another for a few minutes.

"Todd?" Wanda ventured, her voice soft and unsure, though her eyes were wide as she watched me. I took a deep breath, then went to move my legs. Accordingly, they came up to put me into a better seated position as I bid them too. I wiggled my toes, and saw the tips of my shoes writhe with the motion. Experimentally I leaned forward, twisting this way and that with ease and no pain anywhere. Satisfied that I was fine, I looked back at Wanda with a huge smile plastered across my face.

"Well, aren't you charming?" I asked her and she let out a relieved laugh before gently pushing my chest with one hand. For the first time, pure happiness seemed to resonate from her, reaching all the way into her eyes to make them sparkle like gemstones. A smile graced her face and the tension that seemed to be her constant companion was gone.

"I can't believe I did it," I heard her say softly to herself under her breath, and her eyes met mine again. I watched her, feeling a content smile on my lips, then she smiled again this time solely at me. "I did it!" Who knew that the key to her happiness was as simple as working her very first successful charm? Suddenly she threw her arms around me and pulled me close in a hug. "Thank you Todd. I couldn't have done it without you."

"Sure you coulda. I didn't do anythin', that was all you." I told her, and hugged her back feeling my own happiness inflate within me. She pulled back far enough to look at me, but still kept herself in my embrace.

"No, it _was _you. I lost it there, for a moment….I lost my focus, my control. But then you said my name, and the way you looked at me…." She seemed hesitant for a moment, but then tossed all self-imposed restrictions aside. Without warning, I felt her lips on mine and my heart stopped beating. Finally I made my brain come back to life enough for me to react, and I kissed her back, letting myself enjoy this moment with her with no restraints. Too soon she pulled away, but there was still a smile playing about her soft lips. Then there was something new; a spark in her eyes that hadn't been there before. "C'mon," she said, standing then helping me up. She watched me as I stood, still inspecting me for something that her charm had missed.

Assured that I was fine, she started to pull me towards the stairs to go back up to the main level, but a form of recklessness that only came out around her took over for a moment. I felt the hand that she held squeeze gently, then I stopped in my tracks which made her turn around. Without thinking about it, because I knew if I did I would chicken out, I pulled her too me and wrapped my other arm around her back and kissed her as I've always wanted to. For a second she was hesitant, throwing up her defenses against my actions. But soon enough I felt those melt away and she relaxed, returning my affections with her own. Without any magic at all, she had my body on fire and my lungs filled with ice. If I lived 100 years, I still would never get used to the sensations she made me feel with just her touch. Yet again, I regretfully relinquished her as she pulled away, but this time she stayed against my chest to stare up at me.

"You know, if you keep this up I won't need my crystal as a crutch to help with my charms. I'll be able to access them on demand," she said coyly, and the smile on her face soon spread to mine. Just seeing her happy made me feel like I was on top of the world.

"That wouldn't be so bad, would it? A good excuse as any for me t' stick 'round anyways," I teased her. I cupped her cheek in my free hand and kissed her gently one more time before letting her go and following her back up the stairs. In the back of my mind, I knew what would be up here to greet us but at this point, I didn't care. The Brotherhood could go fuck themselves for all I cared about them. Dead silence was the first reaction that we were given. Just the sight of Wanda smiling was enough to do that to anyone who knew her, but then the recognition that she was with me and I was fine settled in. The silence was heavier than the cement had been, and I felt Wanda squeeze my hand, either for my benefit or hers I wasn't sure. It was about then that the silence shattered.

"Wanda, what the fuck are you doing with _that _loser?" Lance called, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at the two of us.

"The only losers I see around here are you three," she countered, taking a stance and throwing hateful, defiant stares at all of them as if daring them to say anything else.

"I thought we squashed you like the bug you are!" pointed out Blob as he took a step in our direction with a menacing look about him. I felt Wanda's hand slip from mine, and a second later Blob went sailing out through the wall behind him shrouded in blue hex magic.

"Anyone else?" Wanda asked, allowing the blue fire to stay around her fists as an added visual aid.

"Wanda-listen-to-me-he's-not-worth-" Pietro got cut off as her hex wrapped around him, bringing him towards her then stopping scant inches from her face. She didn't even flinch.

"He's worth whatever I say he is. And right now that's a hell of a lot more than you've ever been, so watch what you say, _brother._" She spat out the title like acid.

"Look, all we're saying is that you have bigger fish to fry," Lance called, putting his hands up in a defense pose as Wanda turned her murderous glare to him.

"Is _THAT_ what this is about? Mystique hired you all to make sure I wasn't _distracted_ by anything so I could focus only on doing her dirty work!" Well, that made a lot of sense now that I thought about it. They hadn't been bitter at me for succeeding in doing Mystiques will on the Russia trip, it had been her orders to them to make sure that nothing-myself included- got close enough to Wanda to make her attention wander. "Cowards!" Wanda shouted, and used her powers to toss Pietro into Blob who had just made an attempt at re-entering the scene.

"Whoa, take it easy!" Lance yelled as the other two disappeared through the previously made hole. Wanda whirled to face him, her eyes flashing dangerously. I could see that this was only going to escalate and chances were that Mystique wouldn't be happy about any of this. Even worse, she would probably take it out on Wanda. I stepped towards her and put my hand on her shoulder.

"Wanda, they aren't worth it. They're jus' followin' orders. It's Mystique you're really mad at," I told her softly. At first she ignored me, still throwing death glares at Lance. Slowly though, my words permeated her haze and I saw her relax her stance slightly. After a few calming breaths, she nodded and used her hexes to pull Blob and Pietro back into the room.

"Listen to me, and listen well because I will _not _repeat this kindly again: If you even so much as _breathe_ in his direction I will tear you to pieces, molecule by molecule, and keep you alive for the whole thing. I will destroy anyone who dares to push me on this. Understood?" There was dead silence from all three of them, which Wanda didn't take as affirmation. Red leaked into her hexes making them into curses as the magic reached for each of them. As soon as it touched them, they let out cries of pain and writhed as it wrapped around them, throwing all of them to the floor. "I _said __**Am I Understood**__?_" Even though they had direct orders from Mystique to do the exact opposite, their current fear of the Scarlet Witch trumped past deals and all three shouted their understanding of Wanda's newest rule. Instantly the red faded and they were able to stand again. "Good. Now get out of my sight." Instantly Pietro was Gone, and Blob wasn't far behind him. "Except you Lance." She used her hexes to bring him to her, depositing him only a few feet from her.

"Wadda you want, Wanda? I'm already going to leave the little toad alone," he hissed at her, not even sparing me a glance.

"I want Mystique's little messenger boy to give _her_ a message: She will not be permitted to interfere with my personal life or else everything we have thus far will be called off and I will make her regret the day she was born. She is to keep her greedy hands to herself, and deal with me and me _only_, nothing else. Can you manage that?" Lance looked furious at being used as an errand boy, but knew better than to say as much to either Mystique or the Scarlet Witch.

"Yeah, I'll tell her."

"Good, I'm glad you and I could handle this civilly." His only response was to sneer at her, then turn his back to her and walk away rigid as a board.

"You didn't have to do that," I told her quietly when I was sure Lance couldn't hear. She turned to look at me and for a moment her previous anger simmered inside of her still. After watching me for a moment, she let out a sigh and with it most of her pent up anger.

"Yes, I did. Mystique has far out stepped her boundaries with me, and it was time I reminded her of her place. This was the perfect time to do so." For a moment I saw a glimpse of how torturous it must have been for such a powerful mutant like Wanda to have to bend to someone else's demands, and the bitter resentment she harbored for Mystique. Especially after she had finally found a sense of peace in Russia with Piotr and Agatha.

"I'll find a way to get you outta here," I promised her, though I hadn't the tiniest of ideas on how to go about doing so. I just knew I hated to see her caged like this, and I would do anything to free her of this hell she had been lured back into. She smiled at me, though it was more sad than kind.

"That's kind of you to say, but I don't see that happening. But thank you." The gloom in her eyes as she said this pulled at my heart. It was that moment that I knew I had to make my promise come true, no matter the costs to myself or anyone else for that matter. It was right then that I _knew_; I was going to free Wanda and get her back to Russia, if it was the last thing I did.

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><p>A huge thank you to pointyearsrule and the anonymous reviews! :) It helps me to get the inspiration to write the next chapter just knowing that my story is read! THANK YOU!<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

I had thought for sure that Wanda's snub at Mystique's pride would have brought her, and the rest of the world as we know it, down around us almost instantly. Days passed, then weeks, and still we hadn't seen nor heard from Mystique, which I was not about to complain about. Wanda was barely ever at school anymore since she was always off doing something for our blue slave master, which meant that I had no reason to go to school either. I attempted to stay in my room and out of the way of the other Brotherhood boys as much as possible. Even though they weren't antagonizing me anymore, I could tell things were still tense between us.

Ba-ba _boom. __**BOOM**_

A smile played on my face as I made my way upstairs to see Boom Boom. I hadn't heard from her in a while and was starting to worry that she had been upset by my choice with Wanda and how all that had been playing out. I could already hear her and Pietro bickering.

"Ah, c'mon Pietro it's not that bad. It's only a shirt," she was saying, and I came in just as Pietro was retorting, seeing him covered in mustard.

"Yeah-my-_favorite_-shirt! I-mean-c'mon-Boom-Boom-you-coulda-just-knocked-on-the-door!" I saw her shrug and make her way past him into the kitchen which seemed as if a bomb had gone off near the window which was on the way from her stolen rig to the door.

"Yeah, but this way was faster. Oooh thanks, I LOVE cola!" she said as she plucked a can from his hand and took a sip from it. Right about then is when she noticed me. "Hey Slick! Been a while, how you been?" I smiled at her and leaned against the doorframe to the kitchen to watch her rummage through our cupboards.

"Like you don't know already," I scoffed and she shrugged. She always seemed to know more about what was going down in the Brotherhood before even I did. Must be something about being an X-man that automatically sets you one step ahead of everyone else. With a bag of chips in hand, she towed me out to the couch in front of the T.V to talk, since we no longer had to hide down in my room. We sat for a moment, her flipping through the channels and me watching, before I ventured out to break the silence. "Uh, Taby?" She made a noise of acknowledgement, so I continued. "You aren't…upset, I mean about Wanda or anything….are you?"

"'Course not," she told me, turning to look at me as she spoke. "She makes you happy. I never thought it'd happen, but now that it did I'm not gonna throw a fit or anything. I would do the same thing, if, well, y'know." None of the Brotherhood knew about her infatuation with Kurt, and I figured she wanted to keep it that way. "But if she thinks that she's gonna end our friendship jus' 'cause she has a problem with me, she's got another thing coming." I couldn't imagine Taby and Wanda going head to head, and I never wanted to see that. If either of them got hurt, I don't know what I'd do.

"Thanks T," I told her with a huge smile across my face. "That means a lot, yo." She flashed a smile of her own back at me and settled comfortably into our couch, right as something on her rang. I saw her eyebrows knit together as she took out a small handheld device, and gave me a worried look. "X-man stuff?" I asked, and she nodded before heading outside for some privacy. About ten seconds later she burst in, looking panicked.

"HEY! Get off your sorry asses and get geared up. Some bad shit is goin' down, and it's headed this way!" Her call sent all of us bustling to get our stuff together, and I wondered what had happened. Blob echoed my thoughts only seconds later, and her reply had us all freeze for a second.

Magneto was attacking the humans.

By the time we got into town, the X-men were already there trying to fight off Magneto and his clowns. There was an army of what looked to be metal soldiers marching in formation, filling the street in an unwavering squadron, with the master of metal hovering over them. Pyro and Sabertooth were attempting to keep the x-men at bay, and Gambit was nowhere to be seen. That scared me the most, who knew what that crazy southern was up to. Just then a magnetic soldier attempted to separate my head from its neck, and it was quickly blasted by Cyclops.

"Head's up!" he shouted as I leapt out of the way. Usually us and the x-geeks didn't really play well together, but I guess in the grand scheme of Magneto's attack, we were all on the same side; the one trying to stay alive.

Lance was attempting to open a huge chasm to swallow the metal army that trampled anything in their path, but just as his eyes rolled up into his head Pyro turned his gaze on him. Giant waves of flames were now directed at Avalanche.

"Lance!" I called, trying to get his attention as I was too far away to do anything. Luckily Kitty wasn't, and she ran at full speed towards him, grabbing him just before Pyro's flames descended on them. By the time the fire was gone, Lance's earthquake had eaten almost all of the metal army, and both he and Kitty looked dizzy. I managed to throw a huge ball of slime onto Pyro's face, inhibiting him from using his sight for at least ten minutes and giving Kitty and Lance time to get out of the way. Roars of fury erupted from a nearby rooftop as Logan plummeted to the ground, still holding onto Sabertooth. They disappeared, but the noises of their battle continued, letting us know they were both still alive enough to tear the shit outta each other.

Out of nowhere storm clouds gathered and I saw that African woman, Storm, in the sky wielding lightning to strike down anything that got in her way. She directed one at magneto, but then blue hex magic diverted it to strike a car down below, which instantly exploded and left most of us blinking to clear our vision. _Wanda?_ Why would she be helping Magneto? As soon as I could see again, I was looking for her. Sure enough, there she was on a rooftop just behind Magneto, watching the battle.

"Wanda?" I called, but she didn't seem to hear me. Jean had lifted up everything plastic that she could see and was throwing it all at Magneto, but again the blue hex magic deflect it and threw it back at Jean. Rouge must have touched Kitty recently, because she grabbed hold of Jean and all of the debris flew straight through them. "Wanda! What the hell are you doing?" I asked as I leapt from a car to a lamp post, then to an open window in my attempt to get to her. Even though Wanda was ignoring my calls, Magneto wasn't. As soon as he turned his gaze on me I felt it and stopped, looking back at him.

"Be gone, insolent pest. Wanda has no further need for you," he said and raised his hand. The entire metal army that Lance had buried rose up through the ground and reconfigured right below me. As one, they turned their faceless heads up to stare at me, and I felt myself curse. They raised their hands and shards of metal began to fly my way, only to land on the spot that I had been a few seconds ago, yanked away by Jean and set down behind her and Rogue.

"Toad, ah know you love her 'n all, but she's on the wrong side!" Rogue yelled at me. A colossal hunk of what I think used to be a building came tumbling our way, too fast for any of us to do anything about it. A puff of smoke later we were on top of a building to the right of our previous location, thanks to Nightcrawler.

"Ugh, yuck. I can't believe I touched him," Kurt said, stepping away from me with a disgruntled look on his face.

"Kurt, now is not the time," Jean said, then flew off to rejoin the battle.

"Ja, tell me about it," he said, then he too was gone.

"Rogue, listen to me, yo. Wanda'd _never _save Magneto's life. Something's up. I gotta get to her!" Rogue looked hesitant, so I pressed harder. "Please, I can talk to her. You know if anyone can, it'd be me. If we can get her on our side, it'd be a blow to Mag-freako _and_ it'd definitely help us. Please."

"If you go'n get me killed, ah'll never forgive you, y'know that right?" she demanded, and I nodded. "Right, I'll drop ya off near her, but then ah am outta there. You're on your own after that, got it?" Again, I only nodded, then she sighed. "Ah know that ah am gonna regret this," and a second after she put her hand on my shoulder, we were behind Wanda. Guess she had tapped blue boy too sometime recently. "Good luck!" she called, then was gone in another puff of smoke. Slowly I approached Wanda, until I was about five feet behind her.

"Wanda?" I asked, and she spun, hands glowing red and murder in her eyes. I threw my hands up in a defensive pose and took a step back, gritting my teeth for the worst.

"Todd?" she asked, and the glowing subsided. There was something in her eyes for a second, sadness maybe? But then it was gone, replaced by a hardness I remembered all too well. "You need to get out of here, _now_." I put my arms down and walked towards her. About then it started to rain, courtesy of Storm to help with all the fires sprouting everywhere, but I didn't care.

"Wanda what's goin' on? What the hell is Magneto thinkin'? And _why_ are you helpin' him?" She only shook her head, and turned back around to watch what was going on.

"Todd, you need to leave. Get out of here and go some place safe." Again an attack was directed at Magneto, which Wanda thwarted and turned against the attacker which happened to be Spike. Pietro sped to grab him and get him out of the way, which is a sight I'd never think to see. Wanda's eyes weren't on it though, they were on Magneto. A familiar loathing simmered in her gaze, and I knew that she wasn't doing this by choice.

"A while ago you blew his sorry ass outta the House jus' for botherin' you, and now you're on his side? Wanda, this doesn't add up. Something's wrong with this, and you know it." Sirens started up all around town, and the sound of helicopters pervaded the air. We had drawn enough attention to get the big guns involved. Still, no one moved from the scene and the battle raged on.

"It's not that simple anym-" she started, but then Magneto was staring at us.

"Wanda, get rid of him," he commanded, and she hesitated. Magneto didn't like her reaction at all, and I saw his lip curl into a snarl. With a wave of his hand, something large and solid collided with me and threw me back down into the midst of the fight. I heard Wanda call my name, but couldn't really reply as I was two feet from getting made into jelly. I cringed, but when nothing happened I opened my eyes to see Rogue holding onto me and the metal sheet in pieces around us.

"No luck, huh?...Why do you smell like peppermint?" she asked, but didn't stick around for a reply. A series of explosions sounded behind me and I turned to see each head of the metal soldier's exploding, one after the other and the blue elf teleporting rapidly from one to the other. Each time he came back with one of Boom Boom's explosives and placed it in between the neck and shoulder before disappearing again. I turned to see Tabby in a back alley sprouting as many of her little explosives as she could, as fast as possible to give to Kurt each time he showed up next to her. Since I was watching her I saw the large telephone pole about to fall. Without time to even call her name, I shot my tongue out and grabbed it in mid air, tossing it aside just as she looked up.

"Thanks Slick," she said through the rain with a stressed smile. Then a horror-stricken change in her face made me turn around. A huge wave of fire was headed our way. By the time I looked back at Tabby, all that was left was a puff of smoke, meaning Nightcrawler had taken her someplace safe. He had time enough to get one more of the five x-men that were on this side of the firewall with Blob and I, but that was it. Suddenly blue hex magic flared up into a wall of its own, blocking Pyro's attack and quenching the fire with ease. Wanda stood in front of us, her arms raised high and glowing blue.

"That's _enough_ Magneto!" she called and for a second it felt as if the whole world stood still. Each of the marching metal soldiers came to a complete stop, and Magneto turned to look at his daughter.

"Wanda, return to your post," he commanded in that snotty tone of his, but Wanda didn't move. I saw Magneto's eyes flick towards me, and he sneered at her. "Really Wanda, this is childish. I demand you stop this at once." Again she didn't offer up a reply, just continued to stare him down. Her disobedience to his will turned his face into an ugly mask of evil and her shot her a blood-curdling look. "So be it," he said, and raised his hands. Pyro sent more waves of fire at us, but that was only the opening act to Magneto's terror against his wayward daughter and those she protected. Everything that had even a trace of metal in it was sent our way. Wanda threw up a blue dome over all of us, protecting Brotherhood and X-man alike from the attack. She gritted her teeth against the effort this took, then cast her gaze around to see who was near her.

"Jean," she hissed, and the red head looked at her with obvious fear in her eyes. "I need you to keep up a barrier just like this one long enough for me to counter Magneto." At first Jean looked dubious as to if she could do it, but then Scott put a hand on her shoulder, and she nodded.

"Rogue, could you help her?" asked Spike, and Rogue nodded. She went to Jean as she slipped off her glove. The two touched fingertips for a second or two, then Rogue slipped her glove back on.

"Let's do this," she drawled in her southern accent and Jean nodded. Wanda waited until their shield was in place directly under hers before retracting it, then shrouding herself in a hex to walk through their shield and be on the outside of the safe zone to attack her father. As soon as she was out, she pulled red curse magic to cover her and threw her hands up towards Magneto. Everything he had been directing at us now turned against him, turning an ominous shade of scarlet. Buildings writhed under her power, then stood on their own accord and threw themselves at the master of metal. He protected himself by a cocoon of the hardest metals which forced everything else to bounce off of him. Kitty and Nightcralwer were busy getting everyone under Jean and Rogue's shield as fast as they could, but my eyes were glued to Wanda.

From thin air, Gambit appeared twirling his rod and went to attack the Scarlet Witch, with Pyro coming from the other side and Magneto bearing down on her from above. She dug her heels into the earth and summoned more red fire, throwing her arms out to either side of her to hit both Gambit and Pyro in the chest and send them flying through the brick walls of the buildings on either side of her. Gambit was the first to recover, sending a handful of glowing rocks at Wanda. Those were surrounded by blue hex magic and thrown back at him, forcing him to dive behind a dumpster to avoid his own blast. Gunfire was sounded about a block down, letting us know that the feds were on their way. Still Magneto continued to throw all he had at Wanda and those under the dome behind her. Just as Sabertooth let out a feral growl to announce his arrival, Wanda let out a large blast of red light which grabbed all four of them and brought them to her, writhing in pain.

"You have what you came for, now _get out_. And don't you dare let me see you again," she hissed at all of them then threw her arms out in front of her. This caused each of them to be thrown in a different direction, too far for any of us to see where they had gone. This effort had put Wanda to her knees as she gasped for breath, and as soon as Magneto's attack subsided Jean and Rogue were in the same condition.

"Come, we must leave," said Storm as she descended. Tabby helped Rogue up and Scott went to Jean just as I went to Wanda. As she stood, she put a hand to her head and swayed a bit before steadying herself. For a moment she looked lost, then anger flashed through her eyes and she whirled to watch the retreating X-men. A blue tendril wrapped around Jean and yanked her back which instantly had all of the X-men's attention, but Wanda threw up a smaller dome around just the three of us to keep their counter attacks at bay. Just in time, since a beam from Cyclops bounced off of the surface one second after she had put it up.

"If I _ever_ catch you sifting around in my thoughts ever again, you will regret it." Jean was struggling against her restraint, but then met Wanda's fiery glare.

"Fine! Now let me go!" Jean yelled, but Wanda hesitated.

"It would be best for you to forget what you've learned, for everyone's benefit." Jean's eyes grew wide as Wanda chewed her lip. "Todd?" she looked at me, but I had no idea what was going on. "I need your help…." The crystal came out of her ankh necklace and floated before her. I gulped loudly, but nodded. What would the X-men do to us if Wanda blew up Jean? I didn't wanna think about it, so I pushed that thought from my head. I slipped my hand into Wanda's and kept my eyes on her as she worked only the second charm in her life. Slowly the pink light flowed from her into the crystal, then to Jean's head. At first the telepath struggled, then her whole body relaxed. This charm worked faster than her last one, and within a minute the crystal returned to its place in her necklace and Jean was released. I saw Wanda sway again, and caught her before she fell. "You smell like peppermint…" she said softly, and I knew she was just about out.

"C'mon, let's get you home," I whispered softly to her and watched as the dome protecting us from the angry X-men flickered. She had exhausted herself. "Jean isn't hurt or anythin' yo, we jus' needed a talk with her. You can take her now, jus' don't fry us," I called out, hoping that they wouldn't attack us the second Wanda let her barrier down. Seconds later the blue magic puttered out, and we were in the open surrounded by the X-geeks. They looked murderous, until Pietro appeared in front of us, and Blob shoved his way to our back. Lance shook the earth enough to clear his way in to take the third point, offering another line of defense.

"Look, she isn't hurt," Lance said as Jean stood, putting a hand to her head. "Just get outta here."

"Jean?" asked Scott as he came forward and put an arm behind her back to help support her.

"No, no I'm fine…" she told him, though looked confused. "Let's just go home." They hesitated for a minute, but the thumping sound of boots convinced us all that it was time to get our asses outta there before the feds could help us with that. Seconds later we were all running in different directions in attempts to avoid the police and whoever the hell else was after us. Pietro took Wanda, since he would be the first to safety, while Blob, Lance and I all took different routes home. Mine was mostly uneventful since I stayed low and out of sight easily, and I was at the House before Blob, but saw Lance just down the road.

"You ok?" he asked me as we got within speaking distance of each other. I shook my head yes. For a moment we were both quietly awkward, since we still hadn't resolved the tension between us from before. I looked at him from the corner of my eye, and caught him doing the same. "Look, Toad…" he started, but I shook my head.

"'S all good, yo. I get it man, Mystique's one scary bitch. 'Specially recently." He stopped and looked at me to make sure that I was genuine. I only shrugged at him, then he had a faint smile on his face.

"Thanks man." What with all the stress going on outside of our little House, we sure as hell didn't need any more of it inside. We were both eager to put that aside, especially after today. Now the only thing we really needed to focus on was Magneto, and not getting out asses kicked should he choose to return and take vengeance on us for Wanda standing up to him.

As soon as we walked through the door, I was looking for Wanda. Pietro was lying on the couch, staring up at the ceiling. For once, he didn't have some snide remark about how long it took us to get home. I guess seeing your father attempting to destroy everything around him, including his sister, could do that to a guy.

"Wanda's upstairs," he called nonchalantly without even looking at us. Lance and I shrugged at each other, he went to the kitchen and I went in search of my reason for living. I opened her door quietly, peeking around the corner to see if she was sleeping. Instead, she was sitting up on her bed, staring out the window. When the noise of the door opening caught her attention, she turned to see who it was and offered a slight smile when she saw me.

"Hey," I called softly, entering her room and closing the door behind me as she bid me to. "How're you feelin'?" I asked as I came to sit beside her. She closed her eyes and laid her head on my shoulder before answering.

"Better than I have in a long time." That wasn't exactly the answer I was expecting, and my silence was enough to tell her that. With a tug she had us both leaning our backs against the wall, with her head still against me. "I've been Magneto's lap dog since a couple days after his visit, thanks to Mystique. She wanted me to join with him and be her spy on the inside and tell her everything he was doing. She said if I didn't do it, she'd make sure to find _exactly_ where I was hiding in Russia. She was going to go after Piotr and his family." I put my arm around her and brought her closer, offering comfort to her as she told me the things she'd been bearing in silence.

"What exactly _was_ Magneto doin' today?" I asked, but she remained silent. I guess she couldn't tell me everything just yet. "Well did Mystique know 'bout it?"

"Yes, I told her as soon as I found out. She didn't think it was worth blowing my cover to stop him, and let him do it. She'll be furious when she hears about what I did." I took her hand then, which made her look at me. I didn't know why I said it, or how I possibly thought it could be true, but suddenly the words were tumbling out of my mouth.

"It'll be ok; I'll make sure of it." She looked at me for a long time, trying to gauge whether she should trust me or not. I just shrugged at her, and kissed her forehead.

I stayed with her long after the others went to bed, talking about this and that. My presence was mostly for comfort, so it didn't matter what we talked about. Around the usual time, I sat up and readied myself to leave and head back down to my room. I felt her soft hand on my shoulder, and looked back at her. She seemed shy for a minute, and I thought that she would be too withdrawn to say what was on her mind, but then she spoke.

"Can you…would you mind….to stay?" Her voice was so quiet that anyone else might not have heard her. Luckily my heightened senses picked up what she said, and I looked at her strangely for a minute. She always wanted me to leave before the others could find me up here and know that I'd spent the night with her. That, and I guess she didn't really want me getting any ideas. I hesitated, and she dropped her gaze. "I mean, if you don't want to you don't have to."

"Are you sure you want me to?" I asked, and her eyes were back on mine. She nodded instead of speaking, and I went to settle back into place with my arms around her so she could lie back on my chest. Before I could, she stopped me by pushing her lips to mine. I was surprised, but went with it as I felt her familiar fire burning through my veins. I had to remind myself how to breathe as one of her hands went up to rest right behind my neck. Accordingly, I wrapped one of my arms around her back, the other going to cup her face. About then was when all conscious thought was shut down and my mind fogged over in response to the drug that was her touch. That's why it took me so long to figure out that she was gently but distinctly pulling at my shirt. That send a bolt of lightning through my mind and for once it was me who pulled back to look at her. My eyes met hers, and my suspicions were confirmed. "Are you sure you want me to?" I asked again, only this time with an entirely different meaning. She hesitated for only a second, then responded by crashing her lips against mine one more time and pulling me back down to her. For a moment I let it happen, then I guess I had an extra dose of stupid or got hit harder than I thought during the fight, because I stopped her again.

"Todd?" she asked, looking up at me with a confused and all too vulnerable look. I couldn't think properly, still feeling the effects she had on me clog my thought process, but I stumbled out a response so she wouldn't think what she was thinking; that I was rejecting her.

"No, it's not that I don't _want_ to, I mean I do, I jus' don't wanna, y'know I mean I jus' got to a perfect place with you 'n all 'n I like what I have 'n I wouldn't wanna jeopardize that or anythin'-" she cut off my rambling by putting a hand over my mouth. My eyes went back to her instead of staring away in my embarrassment.

"If you don't want to, you don't have to," Wanda told me quietly, and I shook my head. "If I let go will you talk clearly?" she asked, and I nodded. There was a smile on her face, and I was glad that at least _she _was amused by my rambling. Slowly her hand came off, and again I fixed my gaze anywhere but her.

"It's just…I don't wanna, y'know…. _Ruin_ anythin'. I mean I just got on your good side 'n all….it's just…. I don't want you to think that I'm, I dunno, _usin'_ you or anything. I don't want you to think _anything_ like that, really…..I don't want you to start hating me again." There, I said it. Reluctantly I pulled my eyes back to her to see her reaction, and was surprised. She was smiling contentedly at me. "What?"

"That's very kind," she said, and I felt the green cover my cheeks again and I looked away. I felt her hand on my chin, which brought my gaze back up to her. Gently she kissed me once more, which brought on a new wave of fire flooding through my system as every part of me reached out to her. When she pulled back, she was still smiling. "I'm not going to think anything like that. And I'm definitely not going to start hating you again. It's because of you that I have the positive feelings to do charms, Todd. No one else, just you." Her lips pushed against mine, and my heart felt like it was trying to expand enough to burst out of my chest. When she pulled away again, I was breathless. Her eyes met mine strongly, and she laced her hands behind my neck. "Todd, it's ok. It's what I want." I knew it wasn't her first time or anything, but it was her first time with _me_, which still made me apprehensive. Again I felt like asking her, but then she was kissing me in an entirely different way. That's when I gave in and let all my dreams since I'd met her become a reality.

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><p>Thank you pointyearsrule for your questions and insight. I don't really know Blob all that well, thus he has very little to play in all this, but I make sure he's there. I made the basement scene for two reasons: To show the pressure Mystique was putting on the,, and to enable Wanda's first charm. The Brotherhood is changing for the worse because Mystique and Magneto are working against one another, and I thought the best way to show that was through a darkening of characters. Does that make sense? I REALLY enjoy the reviews! Any questions or comment, please don't hesitate! :)<p> 


	10. Chapter 10

Morning came far too quickly. I awoke first, slowly coming around and out of sleep. Groggily I tried to sit up, only to find that something was weighing my arm down. Then a slow smile spread across my face, when I realize that it was Wanda, who was still curled around me with her face against my neck and shoulder. I kissed her forehead gently, and she smiled in her sleep and nestled closer to me. I was granted this feeling of perfect happiness for only a moment, for seconds later I heard Lance's heavy footsteps coming up the stairs, destined to ruin our blissful solace.

"Wanda!" he called scant seconds before opening the door and walking in. Curiously though, this time he had his hand over his eyes; which was an entirely new development for him. Usually Lance didn't care about people's privacy, which meant only one thing: We must have been louder in our activities last night than either of us had thought. Wanda didn't take time to notice this though. Te second he entered her room and disturbed her, she pulled the blankets close, bolted up in bed and hexed him on the spot. He had been expecting this much though, because he was ready for her hex and dodged it, but just barely. This also caused him to remove his hand from his face so he could see what he was dodging.

"Out!" Wanda yelled at him as her hands started glowing blue, readying for her next hex. Lance put his hands out in a defensive nature and fixed his eyes on the ceiling.

"Hey, I don't wanna be here anymore than you want me here, ok?" That was enough to keep her from hexing him again instantly, so he continued on through the rising blush I saw on his cheeks. "Mystique's on her way 'n I figured you'd wanna be up 'n…well, uh, more decent than you are now, by the time she got here." By now his face was more red than Wanda's curses.

"Fine. Message received. Now get out!" Lance was more than happy to oblige her, putting his hand back over his eyes as he exited. Apparently it wasn't fast enough, because a hex chased him out and down the stairs before slamming the door behind him. With him gone, she lay back beside me and pulled the covers over both of us, shutting her eyes and groaning as she did so. I wrapped my arms around her, and felt her kiss gently on my collarbone.

"I thought you were supposed to be getting' up," I teased her softly, to which she threw a wicked smile at me. Sitting up slightly, she held herself over me to kiss me again, which made the blanket slip down to reside just above her lower back. Exactly at that moment is when Pietro burst in to see if what Lance said was true.

"Wanda?" was all he had time to say before his sister clutched the blankets to her once more, sliding to my other side to face him and hex him out of the door before he could say anything else. She let out a frustrated noise before throwing a red curse at the door, which seeped into the wood then disappeared. I had a feeling I did _not_ want to be the next person to touch that door.

"Now I understand why you hate this house; you never get any peace," I told her as she lay down beside me once more and let out an exasperated sigh.

"Yeah, tell me about it," she drawled. For a second she closed her eyes and breathed to a count of seven as she attempted to steady her mind and emotions. When she opened them, she was calm again. "Close your eyes," she commanded.

"Awe, Wanda c'mon. I mean it's not I didn't see-"

"Close them," she told me again. I rolled my eyes at her before obeying. I felt her slide across me to the side of the bed that she could get out of, and then slip from the warmth of her bed to walk towards her wardrobe. "And don't even think about peeking," she mused, though not unkindly.

"Wouldn't dream of it," I replied sarcastically, only to feel the remaining covers pull themselves up over my head. "Awe, c'mon!" I moaned again. My own clothes wriggled their way under the blankets with the help of some purple spells cast from Wanda, and I slipped into them just before my fabric shield was pulled away. She was smiling gently at me, but it didn't reach her eyes; she was worried about Mystique and the repercussions from her stance against both her and Magneto shown last night. I stood and went to her, putting my hand under her chin. "Hey. It'll be alright," I told her gently, and she looked away.

"I know," but from her tone she was trying to convince herself just as much as me. I put my arms around her and pulled her close, and she hugged me back gently.

"Look, I'll be right there the whole time 'n-"

"No you won't," she told me, pulling back to lock her eyes onto mine. I felt myself frown slightly at this request, but she shook her head. "Todd, if I asked you to do something, would you?" She knew I would, but I nodded my head anyway. "Then I want you to call Boom Boom, get her to come pick you up as soon as possible. Stay with her and as many others as you can; at the mansion if you could manage it. I don't want you anywhere near Mystique right now." I exhaled gently, and put my hand on her face.

"Wanda, you know that I'll do whatever you ask, but please don't ask me t' leave you alone with this crazy bitch. I wanna be here with you," she was already shaking her head.

"No Todd. If I were to ever ask anything from you, it'd be this. Get out of here and go as far as you can, and stay with Boom Boom." I knew that tone and the look in her eyes. She wasn't going to drop this. With a defeated slump to my shoulders I nodded. As much as I did _not_ want to leave Wanda right then, I knew that's what she wanted and I couldn't go against that. Besides, after watching her in the fight, I knew she was more than capable of handling herself against almost any enemy. "Good," she kissed me gently again before pulling away and heading to the door. Instead of touching it, she used purple spell magic to open it, then shut it behind us.

I called Boom Boom as she bid me to while she went into Pietro's room to settle her own score with her brother. I could hear them shouting at one another, but it was ended by Pietro flying out through his own door to land against the wall in the living room, across from the couch I was sitting on.

"'Sup, yo?" I asked as I raised my eyebrow at him in an uncaring way. He looked like he was getting ready to kill me, before his eyes darted behind me to rest on what I knew would be Wanda. He played with the idea for a second longer before getting up, dusting himself off, then storming off. Wanda eyed him the whole way, then came to sit beside me after he was gone. "Feel better?" I asked her, and she turned to look at me. For a moment she battled with it, then left out a sunbeam of a smile from behind her clouded face.

"You know it," she confided in me, and I smiled back at her. No matter how much therapy and training she went through with Agatha, I knew she would still feel best to relieve stress by hexing the Brotherhood. It was about then that my keen hearing picked up distinct sounds that made the smile wash off of my face. Wanda saw it, and knew what was coming. "Go out the back-"

The door crashed open from a vicious kick: Too late. Instantly we were both on our feet. Wanda's hands were glowing as she stepped in front of me.

"What, no welcoming comity?" came the velvet purr that had chills erupting up and down my spine. Upon her call, the other three were immediately in her presence with a new rigidity to them. She sneered at them as she walked by each of them then into the living room where Wanda and I stood our ground, crossing her arms as she stood before us. Murder flashed through her eyes, and she reminded me of a ticking time bomb that was seconds from exploding. I saw those eyes sweep over me, and her lip curled. "You know that you have breeched our agreement. And for what, that little vermin?" she spat out acidly, and Wanda's blue glow started to spark red.

"I did it because it was _right_. Someone needed to stop him, and no one else had the balls to do it, including you. You know what I did was the best course of action, why I choose to do it is my own worry," Wanda shot back.

"Who do you think you _are_? Without me you would be **nothing!** Still trapped in the mental institution and subject to Charles Xavier's experiments and mind games! You owe me your freedom, your allegiance and your _life_!" Mystique had lost her calm composure from before and looked to be one crow short of a murder. Still, that didn't frighten Wanda; on the contrary, she took a step towards Mystique and began to glow a very dark blue all the way up to her biceps as her hex-fire licked along her arms.

"I owe you _nothing_. I am here by choice, not by force. If I wanted, I could leave out that door whenever I want to. I know how invaluable my abilities are to you, so if I were you, I would watch your step. Know your place, Mystique." All of us held our breath, waiting for the world to explode and end right then and there. No one had ever spoken to her that way, not that we knew to live to tell about it anyways. Mystique's jaw clenched and unclenched and we saw her mind race with possible actions. Finally her eyes settled on me, and a grin that made my skin crawl peeled from her teeth.

"You are right in one thing; at this point I find your abilities far too valuable to dispose of. But _he_, in his grotesque entity, is entirely too expendable. He's become a liability and a nuisance that far outweighs any good he's ever brought to this team, and I believe his number is up." Uh oh.

Wanda's blue hex instantly blazed into a deep crimson wave of rampant flames that flew to ignite across her entire body, covering her with a burning curse.

"You will not touch him, for as long as I live," Wanda hissed out, voice wavering dangerously in a tone that had all of the Brotherhood, myself included, taking a step back.

"Is that a threat?" Mystique challenged as that sickly grin of hers spread into a dangerous sneer.

"It's a promise!" With that, Wanda threw out her hands, and the red fire leapt from her onto the blue woman, bringing her to her knees and dragging her before Wanda's feet. With a raise of one hand, Mystique was pulled to hang before Wanda's face as she writhed and shifted from form to form out of excruciating pain. She let the burning crimson fade into a deep mixture of blue and red, enough so that Mystique was still her captive but was able to hold still and pay attention to what she was saying. "You have crossed the line. I have more power than you could ever achieve, and you know this. No longer will I be your _slave._ I am my own entity, far greater than you, and will be treated as such. _When _I leave- which will be very soon, rest assured- you will let me go, and forget any thought of ever searching me out ever again." Blue hex magic now swirled with purple and red across Mystique's skin, and for once I saw fear in the woman's eyes as it crept across her body.

"You will regret this, I will make sure of that!" she hissed at Wanda. Her pride would always be her biggest downfall. Her words seemed to awaken the other three, who choose then to all rush Wanda. With a flick of her fingers from her free hand, she suspended all of their mutant abilities as well as their ability to move.

"I can take your mutant gene away from you entirely, and leave you human for the rest of your miserable life. Do. _**Not**_. Test. Me." That threat was enough to get Mystique's mouth to clamp shut and she stopped struggling against Wanda's hold on her. Still, she had that definite spark in her eyes that let us know she would not let Wanda go unpunished for her actions. Wanda snarled, and threw her arm to her side, which tossed Mystique up against the wall and held her there. "C'mon Todd, I need some air." And with that she left all four of them sealed to the wall and ceiling without their mutant powers to air them.

We walked in silence for a long time, and I trailed behind her to give her room and time to think. Finally we reached the middle of a park where hardly any lights reached, and she stopped. It was barely noon, but the darkness I saw in Wanda seemed to make it feel like midnight. She put her arm up against a tree and leaned against it, letting her shoulders droop. I came up behind her and put my arm around her waist, which put her back to the tree and her face staring up into mine.

"Wanda?" I asked, searching her eyes. What I saw there, I wasn't prepared for. She was scared, and not lightly. For all she had put up a brave front for Mystique, she was petrified of what the woman would do to get back at her. I saw her chin wobble once, then she closed her eyes and clenched her jaw, trying to burn that emotion away. "You shoulda just let her have me," I told her quietly, and she shook her head at me.

"No, I would never do that. I won't ever let her touch you. Besides," she said, now opening her eyes to look at me, then away. "Mystique can find other ways to get at me. She knows you as one of my weaknesses now, but has used others before. I'm scared of Piotr, and his family, and everything he has in Russia. He just barely escapes Magneto, and now Mystique will go after him, because of me. And who knows what Magneto will do, now that I've turned against him openly. He's planning something big, Todd. And I know those plans. And _he_ knows that I'm the biggest threat to him now. And Mystique is not about to let me get away with dethroning her." Here she closed her eyes again, and sank to the ground then leaned her head back against the tree. I sat down next to her, taking her hand and putting it in mine. "They have both made attempts on my life before; several times. They will stop at nothing to get what they want, one way or another. It doesn't _matter _to them what happens, or what the 'collateral damage' is. And I know that no matter what I do, no matter where I go, they will both still hunt me. Either to use my powers, or to end my threat against them. I will never stop running, as long as they know that I'm alive somewhere."

I gathered her up into my arms, hating how lifeless she felt to me. Gently I held her, wishing now more than ever that Mystique had never run across her files in Xavier's mansion. I wished that Magneto had never locked her away in that hellhole of an institute. I wished that Mystique and Magneto had never been a part of her life. And then, like lightning, I felt it hit me.

"Wanda?" I asked, and she looked up at me. There was a question in her face, probably in response to the tone she was hearing. "Are you still in contact with Agatha?" I asked her, and she gave me a strange look.

"I could be if I wanted to. I know how to reach her. Why?" she asked, but I just shook my head.

"I need t' talk to her, as soon as you could arrange it."

"Todd, what-" Again I shook my head.

"Do you trust me?" I asked her, and she hesitated, then nodded and lay her head back against my shoulder.

"With my life," she admitted, and I hugged her tightly.

"Then for once, let me be the one who does the savin'."

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><p>A HUGE thank you to AlvaBlueFyre for your reviews :) Also to OutlawKnight and pointyearsrule. Without you, I probably wouldn't be writing as much, or near as frequently! I love the feedback! It gives me the drive to keep going, and the reassurance I need when I hit a brick wall. THANK YOU! Please don't hesitate to comment with questions, insights or other remarks. It's very appreciated! <p>


	11. Chapter 11

"Is it possible?" I asked into the phone, pacing back and forth in Tabby's room, trying to keep my voice down so no one would know I was there.

"Do you know what you're asking? It would take a great matter of power, extreme control, flawless focus and discipline-"

"Is it possible?" I interrupted the elderly voice on the phone to repeat my questions, and silence followed.

"I will arrive shortly. You had better know what you are doing, boy."

"Yeah, tell me about it," I said as the connection clicked off from the other end. The phone got tossed on the bed, right before I decided to join it. My thoughts were running wildly, mostly hoping to God that this wasn't some huge mistake. What if I was wrong? What if she couldn't do it? What if I was asking too much of her? What if it backfired and something terrible happened? What if it didn't work at all? What if I didn't-

"Toad?" called Tabby as she entered her room, quickly shutting the door behind her. I sat up and looked at her, and she came over to sit on the bed next to me. "How's it going?" I shrugged and looked away.

"It goes," I said dismissively, not wanting to reveal to anyone what was going on. They would only try to stop me, for one reason or another. Tabby frowned at me, not liking my secrecy. She opened her mouth to argue with me, but I put my hand up. "You're just going t' have t' trust me on this one Tabs." She crossed her arms and looked at me with defiance written all over her face.

"Whatever it is that you're doing, I could probably _help_. So why won't you let me in on this?" she asked and I shook my head again.

"I know you could, n' I'm not saying anythin' against that, yo. I'm just saying that I need t' do this one on my own." My answer still didn't satisfy her, so I continued. "You'll know everything- when it's time. Right now I don't know much myself. Let me get things together first, ok?" I could see her thinking about this, then she nodded her head.

"I better be the first to know, and I want in on this, whatever it is." I nodded compliantly, and she lay back on the bed. "Where's Wanda?" she asked, and I looked down at my newest accessory; a ring with a red gemstone set in the middle that seemed to shift colors with no reason.

"Safe," I answered before lying down next to her. She grabbed my hand and looked at the ring.

"How's it work?" she asked, and I looked at it too.

"Wanda made it. She has a matching one on the same finger. I dunno how it works or anythin', I just know that when it turns black she's in trouble." Tabby turned my hand over in hers, fascinated by my ring.

"Cool," she whispered as her eyes fell into the churning colors of the gem. As if on cue, it flashed a brilliant pink that nearly blinded us. "Whoa! What was _that_?" she asked me as I stood up.

"It means it's safe for me to head back to the House. She musta settled things there." Tabby stood up in front of me, blocking my exit.

"Hey, you sure it's safe? Last I saw they were all glued to the walls 'cause-a her, with no one to help them out. I can't imagine that they'd be so forgiving so soon. Maybe you should just stay here for a while. Y'know, 'til things calm down." She looked genuinely worried, so I offered her a reassuring smile.

"If Wanda says it's safe, 'n it's safe." Tabby still looked dubious, so I hugged her gently. "It'll be ok Tabs." Finally she sighed and hugged me back.

"Yeah, it better be. Lemme give you a ride though." I nodded compliance, and let her take me out to Scott's car. Vaguely I wondered if he knew she took it this often, but decided I'd rather not know the answer to that.

"Thanks Tabby," I told her as we pulled up to the House, both of us eyeing it like it might explode at any second.

"Yeah, don't mention it. And Toad?" I looked at her as her eyes held mine for a minute. "Be careful."

"Will do," I told her with a nod, hugged her then got out of the car. She drove off as I entered through the door, my nerves buzzing with apprehension. For all I told Tabitha I would be ok, I just never knew what was going to happened once I was in the House anymore.

"Wanda?" I called tentatively. Silence. I took a step in and closed the door, looking around me as I did. Everyone was gone from the living room where they had been previously held hostage. Good and bad: Good they weren't there, bad I didn't know where they were. "Wanda?" I called again.

"Up here," she answered from her room, and I sighed in relief. I went up the stairs to find her, pushing the door open to discover her sitting on the bed, pouring over some old scrappy book and chewing on her thumb nail. She didn't even acknowledge my presence, so absorbed she was in her book.

"What's that?" I asked, going to sit next to her.

"Spell book from Agatha," she answered dismissively in a preoccupied tone. I let her study it in silence as I lay down next to her. We were silent for what seemed like hours with only the turning of pages to disturb the stillness. Just as I felt myself nodding off, she closed the book and rubbed her forehead with her thumb and forefinger. I sat up and put a hand to her back, which caused her to open her eyes and offer me a tired smile. "Sorry," she started, but I shrugged.

"Don't be. Learn anything?" Wanda shook her head then leaned it against my shoulder.

"Not nearly enough. There's absolutely nothing in there that would help me." She looked at me then, and I knew what she was going to ask.

"No Wanda, not yet," I told her. I had yet to reveal what I had in mind to anyone but Agatha. I wanted to make sure it was possible before letting Wanda in. She sighed at my answer, and I hugged her closely. "Soon though. Soon. Where did they all go?" I asked, meaning the Brotherhood and Mystique. A ghost of a smile appeared on her lips, and I could tell she was pleased with herself.

"Away. They won't be back for a while."

"Good. I'm kinda expecting company soon." Wanda looked at me curiously then, and I just shrugged.

"How soon?" she inquired. Like magic, we heard the door downstairs open. She shot me another look, but I shrugged again.

"Ok, even _I_ didn't think it'd be this fast," I admitted as I got up and pulled her to her feet. We walked down the stairs to meet Ms. Agatha Harkens near the door as she was pulling off some type of traveling cloak. "That was quick," I remarked as I leaned against the wall to let Wanda reunite with her mentor and teacher.

"Have you told her yet?" she asked me, totally ignoring my observation and looking Wanda over from top to bottom with a careful eye. I shook my head, and she clucked disapprovingly at me. "Well then, we have work to do. Come dear, we don't have time for much chatter." Wanda looked from me to Agatha, questions buzzing behind her eyes. "Wanda," came the sharp call from the kitchen as Agatha was on her way out the back.

"Well she hasn't changed one bit," Wanda observed dryly and headed out the same way Agatha had exited. I trailed after them, wondering idly if I'd get kicked out. Much to my surprise I was allowed to stay, if only because they were ignoring my presence. "Agatha, what's going on? I'm glad to see you, but surprised. Is everything ok?" Agatha waved her hand at Wanda while letting her own magic out to form a circle of light around them.

"Yes child, everything there is fine. It's things here that have gotten out of hand. Now, clear your mind." Instantly Wanda exhaled and closed her eyes, falling into a routine she had discovered in Russia. She listened to Agatha's demands without another word, which shocked me. After the initial exercises, Agatha clucked again. "You have gotten sloppy in my absence. Have you been meditating as I've told you to?" Shame-faced, Wanda shook her head. Agatha scowled first at her, then turned her gaze on me. "You mustn't let other distractions get in the way of your training, or it will unravel."

"Yes,_ Duani_," Wanda answered meekly, using the term for teacher. Agatha looked pleased for a moment before continuing.

"Now, what knowledge do you have of the plan that has been hatched by the boy?"

"None," Wanda admitted. "Only that you were involved." This brought Agatha's brows together as she cast a sharp look in my direction.

"Then we have our work cut out for us, don't we? Well, no more time should be wasted. We start now."

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><p>School, the x-geeks and life itself was all but forgotten in the next month. Wanda was forced to dedicate almost every waking moment to her training with Agatha. She would get so tired and frustrated that she would almost give up, but I helped her through the toughest parts. Together, we worked secretly under the radar to get Wanda everything she needed. I had never seen her work so hard before, and judging by Agatha's response, neither had she. But Wanda had the taste of hope in her mouth. She saw her way out, and was fighting to do everything she could to attain it. I couldn't help but be proud of her.<p>

"Wanda, it's time." Wanda stood, panting heavily, across from Agatha as their most recent session came to a close. Upon hearing these words, her eyes grew wide.

"You think so?" she asked, and Agatha nodded her head while clasping her hands in front of her.

"I can do no more for you, and I think at this point the risks are verifiable. I have faith in your abilities." Wanda reached out, and I guided her to a chair where she sat down heavily, still trying to catch her breath. I pushed a bottle of water into her hand, and she smiled absently at me.

"When?" she asked, before downing more than half of the bottle in one swig. Agatha looked at me for the answer, and I shrugged at her.

"Hey, I just saw the potential and put the idea together. I dunno anythin' about actually _doin'_ this, yo," Wanda put a hand into mine and squeezed, which made me look down at her.

"We need Lance and Pietro, that much is for sure. Can you somehow get them to do what we want?" she asked me, and I nodded.

"'Course I can," _somehow. Dunno how but I will._ "Where do you want the trail to end?" Wanda thought about it for a moment, and cast her eyes around.

"Somewhere with limited metal," interjected Agatha, and Wanda nodded.

"At the cove, by the ocean." That made sense. Out of the way, yet close enough that neither of our targets would suspect anything awry. That and for some reason, the sea's water seemed to strengthen Wanda astronomically. God knows she would need it. Wanda's eyes locked on Agatha's, and Agatha nodded again. It was really going to happen. This was it; now or never. Agatha approached her and bent to place a simple kiss on her forehead.

"I have faith in you, child. You have done well. Blessed be."

"Blessed be," Wanda responded, nodding her head respectfully at her mentor before Agatha left us alone. I put my hand on her shoulder, and she leaned her head against me. "Todd?" she asked quietly, and I kneeled down beside her, taking her face in my hands.

"Agatha's right Wanda; you can do this. I've seen the progress you've made this whole time." Her sapphire eyes found mine and searched them for any shadow of a doubt. When she didn't find it, I pulled her close and pressed my lips to hers, letting the familiar fire spread through my limbs and burn through my body. When she pulled away, I smiled at her and she smiled back.

"Thank you Todd. You don't know how much this means to me." I kissed her against gently, then pulled away.

"I'll go find our messenger boys. I should be back soon. And Wanda?" I asked, and she looked up expectantly. "You'll do great." I left her with that and went in search of Lance first, figuring that Pietro would deliver the message much faster anyway so it would be better to find him last. Lance wasn't hard to find. He was at school, stalking Kitty as usual. I waited for him on top of the lockers as he passed by unknowingly beneath me. As he bid Kitty to her class and turned around to leave, I jumped and landed on his back.

"Wassup yo?" I asked as he tried to fling me off.

"Ugh, get _off _of me you slime ball!" he called, so I jumped off to land right in front of him.

"Long time no see, huh?" I told him as he wiped himself off.

"Not long enough if you ask me. Whadda you want Toad?" he demanded, getting right to the point.

"Jus' wanted ta see if you still held your job as Mystique's messenger boy." By the snarl that spread across his face, my answer was given to me. "Good. You listening?"

"Shove off Toad, you have nothing that'd interest either me or her. You're lucky to be alive." I shrugged. This was common knowledge.

"Does Mystique still want the Scarlet Witch on her side, or what?" That piqued Lance's interest, and he stopped.

"Whadda you mean?" I smiled at him and leaned against the wall.

"Wanda found out some…._interesting_ information about Magneto. She thought maybe Mystique'd like ta know it, is all. But if you're both not interested-"

"Shut up Toad and tell me what you know," he said, casting around to see if anyone else was around.

"I don't know anythin', yo. She wouldn't tell me. She jus' wanted me ta find you 'n tell Mystique to meet her someplace. She doesn't wanna be out in the open, in case Magneto finds her, y'know? That's why she's all but disappeared all this time." I could see the gears working in Lances head as what I said all clicked into place.

"Yeah ok, where?" Too easy.

"Out in the cove, by the bay, tonight." He gave me a quizzical look, and I only shrugged. "She's been a bit jumpy 'round metal, that's all I know." This made sense to him as he nodded.

"Yeah, I'll pass it on. Now get outta here," he told me as he turned away. I smiled and hopped away all too willingly. Now for Pietro….

I tried searching on my own, but Wanda had warned me it wouldn't work. I had to enlist the help of Caliban, who sent me to the mall of all places. Vaguely I wondered why he was there, but didn't really care enough to ask. Sure enough, I found him right where Caliban had said he'd be: In Gap.

"That shirt doesn't really show off your figure, yo. I'd go with the grey one," I commented from behind him, which made him jump and spin around.

"Toad! What-are-_you -_doing-here?" I would tell he was tensed to run, so I relaxed my demeanor entirely so as not to spook him.

"What? Can't a guy try 'n find a new wardrobe every once 'n a while?" I asked, picking up a shirt and holding it up to me.

"Not-you. You-waer-the-same-clothes-every-day-for-doing-here?" I would tell he was tensed to run, so I relaxed my demeanor entirely so as not to spook him.

"What? Can't a guy try 'n find a new wardrobe every once 'n a while?" I asked, picking up a shirt and holding it up to me.

"Not-you. You-wear-the-same-clothes-every-day-for-_years_. Now-tell-me-why-you're-here-you-little-goober-or-I'll-make-you-regret-it!" he hissed at me, and I put my hands up.

"Whoa, easy! I'm sensin' some hostilities here that I don't think're justified." I cast my eyes around, looking from side to side before moving closer. "Look, I'm jus' here to tell you somethin'. The Scarlet Witch trusts it won't get to the wrong ears, if ya know what I mean."

"Hey-I'm-on-Mystique's-side-now-I-never-talk-to-Magneto-anymore!" we both knew it was a lie by the way his eyes glanced around, but no one was paying attention.

"Yeah yeah, I'm sure. Look, you know as well as anyone else Mystique 'n I haven't been seein' eye to eye exactly recently." The last encounter with her must have entered his head, because he smiled briefly before nodding. "She's not the one Wanda's lookin' ta help out." Once more he looked dubious about admitting he was playing for his father's team, but then he dropped the façade.

"What's-it-to-either-of-you?" he asked, and I shrugged.

"Wanda's found somethin'. Somethin' big. Big 'nough to try 'n get Magneto's attention even after their last visit."

"Yeah-right-Toad-everyone-knows-Wanda-wants-nothing-to-do-with-him." I shook my head at him and glanced around again just to make him nervous.

"That's true, but she knows when ta draw the line. She found out somethin' from Mystique that she doesn't like. She'd be willing ta talk with Magneto if he'd be willing to help take Mystique down." I let that statement sit in Pietro's mind for a moment as he mulled it over. Finally he gave in.

"Alright-what-is-it?"

"You think Wanda'd tell me somethin' this big? She jus' didn't wanna risk comin' out in the open, yo. In case Mystique saw her 'n guessed what she was up to. I'm only here to arrange a meeting between her and Magneto. She won't trust anyone else with what she's learned." Again Pietro was hesitant to trust my words, but then again if I was telling the truth this could be the biggest move for Magneto and he couldn't be held responsible for throwing that away.

"Alright-the-message-will-get-to-him. Where-do-they-meet?"

"At the cove, next to the bay, tonight. She said it'd be the last place Mystique'd look for Magneto, 'n she _is _looking, trust me. Why d'ya think Wanda's been so MIA recently?" That was enough to stop any questions he had.

"Right. Now-get-out-of-here-you-creep-I-can't-be-seen-with-you!"

"Good ta see you too Pietro," I called over my shoulder as I turned around, but he was already gone. Well, my part was done. Now everything rested on Wanda. For the millionth time I wondered if I was asking too much of her. Maybe she wasn't ready, as Agatha had thought. What would that mean? The possibilities of things that could go wrong were endless. Hadn't Agatha stressed over and over again that she wasn't to over-do herself? Hadn't she outlined the danger of Wanda's powers over and over again? What if it was my stupid plan that got Wanda killed? I couldn't bear the thought of that. I don't know what I'd do without-

"Toad?" I spun around while crouching, getting ready to spring my ass outta there. Then my eyes landed on a group of the x-girls, with Tabby in their midst. Slowly I stood as she pulled herself away from their crowd to come towards me. The others hung back hesitantly, whispering to one another. "What are you doing here?" she asked, and I shrugged.

"Can't a guy go to the mall every now 'n again?" I asked, and she put her hands on her hips.

"Not you," she retorted

"Y'know I've been hearin' that a lot today. I'm starting to take offense ta that." She smiled at that, but only slightly.

"C'mon Toad, what's going on? 'N where's Wanda?" I shrugged, and looked behind her at the gaggle of girls staring at us. She frowned, but the turned around, and motioned for them to continue on without her. At first they didn't move, but then Jean said something and they moved off as a group directly opposite of us. "There. Now what's happening?" I sighed, and went to sit down on the closest bench. My chest felt unusually tight, and I couldn't meet her eyes.

"Tabby…" I sighed again, not knowing what exactly to say to her. She put one hand on my shoulder, and the other took my hand that was closest to her.

"Toad, it's me. You can tell me anything. I'm here for you." Ouch. This stung a lot more than I thought it would.

"Tabby…I… Look, I can't say much. A lot is riding on this, and I can't risk blowing it. But. Ugh." I put my head in my hands. It shouldn't be this hard! What we were doing was best. Wanda and I could be free after this. No one hunting, no one lurking in shadows, no need to look over our shoulders or hide for any reason. That was worth everything else, wasn't it?

"Toad…?"

"Tabby…" I looked up at her then, my eyes meeting hers. I couldn't tell her, I knew that much. She would try to stop us. But I couldn't say nothing. "You've always been there for me. That means more ta me than you'll ever know. You were the best thing to ever happen to me, 'n I'll never forget that. No matter what."

"Toad, you're starting to scare me," she said in a cautious tone, keeping her eyes on my face.

"I know, but you shouldn't be scared. Everything'll be fine, yo. 'N I'll make up for everything. I promise." I could tell that nothing I was saying was making this any better. "Tabs, I'm sorry. Really I am. You jus' gotta trust me with this one. Everythin'll be ok, you'll see." For a moment I saw through her usual pretenses. For a split second, she seemed vulnerable and damn near her breaking point. Then she pulled me into a tight hug and put her face into my shoulder and neck.

"You had better be right Todd Tolanski, or else I'll kill you myself and fry your legs in butter." I smiled in spite of myself, and embraced her back. Finally she pulled back and held me at arm's length. The vulnerability had mostly disappeared, but I could still see it stirring beneath the surface. "I'm more attached to you than you know. If you go 'n get yourself killed, I'll never forgive you." I put my hand to her face and smiled again.

"I'll keep that in mind," I told her, then stood. "I really do have ta go. I'm kinda on a tight schedule." And I hated myself for it. There was nothing more that I wanted right then more than to spend the day with her like we used to. I wished more than anything that I had spent more time with her recently. She could see me fighting within myself and stood too, putting her hand on my arm.

"Then go. And when all this is over, I expect a full explanation and a gift basket for the worry you put me through." I laughed at her, but it was half hearted.

"Yeah Tabs, I'll do that. I'll make it up to you somehow, that much's for sure." We looked at each other, and we hugged again. I couldn't help it; I gripped her to me as hard as I could and fought the strange clenching in my chest. Who knew it'd be this hard to let go? But she had always been there for me when no one else was. She was my rock, the thing that I held onto when I was lost. I had her to thank for almost everything good that ever happened in my life. And how was I repaying her? The guilt killed me.

Again we let go, and I was surprised to find her eyes were moistening near the edges, as if she were about to cry. It's almost as if she felt what was going to happen. With a gentle shove she pushed me away and blinked rapidly.

"Get outta here, ya big lug. Go save the day or whatever it is that you do. We'll catch up later." I stepped back and nodded, watching her turn and walk away from me. She never looked back, not even once. With a sigh I turned and found my own way out, with what felt like the world weighing down my heart.

Eventually I found myself back at the House, just as the sun was setting. Wanda was in her room, preoccupied with her own thoughts, but the second I entered she knew something was wrong.

"Todd?" she asked, standing. I shook my head at her and sat on the bed. She joined me, taking my hand in hers.

"I got Lance 'n Pietro to do what we wanted. It's all set up," I reported, and she put strong hands under my chin, forcing me to look at her.

"You ran into Tabitha, didn't you?" It amazed me that she knew me so well as to have guessed that. I took a deep breath, and nodded. "Todd…you don't have to do this with me," she told me, and my eyes snapped up to hers, and suddenly it was my hand that was clutching hers.

"No Wanda, I'm in this with you, 100%. No matter what happens," she looked hesitant, so I squeezed her hand.

"You have something here Todd. Not much, but I know that the bond you have with Tabitha is strong. Are you so willing to throw that away?"

"I'm not throwin' it away. She'll be better off without me. She's never needed me, it was always me who needed her." My eyes locked on hers so I was sure she would see the complete honesty in me. "I know what I'm doin', 'n I won't look back. I'm with you., 'n that's that." She watched me for a while, then sighed.

"You're so stubborn sometimes," she told me with a smile, and I smiled back. Before I could answer, Agatha was at the door.

"It's time child. We must move now." We both turned to look at her, and a sobering silence fell over all of us. Reality was hitting hard now, since everything was unfolding right before our eyes.

"Alright," Wanda said as she stood up and pulled me to my feet. "Let's go."

* * *

><p>I waited on the other side of the cove, just barely able to see the giant blue orb that was hiding my Wanda from view. Agatha sat beside me, keeping a bubble of her own power open that was a speaking spell with Wanda at the other end.<p>

"You see anything?" Wanda asked.

"Not yet. Patience child, the time is here. Just wait." I could almost feel the tension inside of Wanda. Maybe that was my own apprehension. At that point, I wasn't really sure. She was hiding out of sight in case either Magneto or Mystique came before the other and saw their adversary. If either of them spooked and ran, it'd be monumentally harder on Wanda. Wielding a charm this powerful would be difficult enough without having to use curses right before hand. Finally a huge silver orb appeared in the sky.

"Magneto," both Agatha and I said at the same time. Magneto entered Wanda's blue orb, and we heard him address her. Before she could even reply, a slinking black animal scurried mischievously towards Wanda, looking this way and that for other signs of life.

"And Mystique approaches. Good luck child." With that, Agatha closed her palm and extinguished the glowing green spell that she had linked to Wanda. "Now, we wait." I don't know what would have been worse; somehow being in there with Wanda and watching it all happening, or waiting outside without any sense of what was going on. I know that right then, just sitting there doing nothing was killing me. Minutes felt like hours, and it wasn't until Agatha put her hand to my back that I realized I was holding my breath. The night felt so still that any sudden movement would shatter it into pieces. After what felt like forever, Wanda's orb turned an eye-smarting color of pink and I felt both Agatha and I inhale sharply as it shattered.

"Wanda! We gotta get over there!" Compliantly, Agatha opened a green portal and both of us stepped through to arrive not three feet behind Wanda. She was leaning against a rock with one hand to her head and swaying dangerously. Both Mystique and Magneto were passed out cold with shifting veins of pink hovering around their heads. "Wanda!" I called again, rushing to her to put a hand on her back.

"It's ok Todd. I'm fine. That part's over." Agatha was inspecting the two unconscious mutants, then stood and nodded.

"You did well. Stand in the water for a while before moving on," she suggested, and I helped Wanda down to the ocean's waves. We walked in until we were both up to our waist-line in the numbingly cold surf. Like magic, Wanda regained color in her features and stopped leaning on me as much.

"Feel better?" I asked, and she nodded but we both knew that only half of our endeavor had been accomplished. Still, that was an accomplishment in and of itself.

After a few peaceful moments in the water, she took a deep cleansing breath. She closed her eyes and a pink light flowed out to cover her entirely. In one fist she clenched the crystal that had helped her with her first few curses, and with the other she grasped me tightly. Agatha too started to shine in her own light which combined with Wanda's to create a bright source of color. They both started chanting words I didn't know under their breath. A lightning bolt of pink shot up into the sky and turned what seemed like the entire heavens a brilliant cotton candy color. Wanda's charm lasted barely a millisecond before the color dissipated and the night was black once more. Instantly she sagged against me, knocked completely unconscious. I held her to me but stayed in the ocean, hoping the water would help her recover but nothing seemed to faze her at this point. I looked to Agatha, but she seemed to be on the verge of passing out herself.

Slowly I watched Wanda's skin grow more and more pale as life drained from her to fuel the charm she had just set into motion. Even though she had severed it, still it drew from her powers and when those were drained, her life force. Just when I thought she had over-done herself, the rapid deterioration of her state halted, leaving her breathing but just barely. I stayed in the ocean a bit longer, but when it was clear that that wasn't making a difference, I made my way back to the cove.

"Let us rest here a while before attempting to leave," Agatha coughed and I nodded. I lay Wanda out on the ground and put my hand to her face.

"Please, dear God, please be ok," I begged silently as I watched the heavy rasp of her breath pull her chest down and struggle to push it back up again. When Agatha looked like she had regained some sense of herself, I looked back to her.

"Did it work?"

"We won't know fully just yet. Toying with people's memories and emotions is messy business, boy."

"But do you think it worked?" I pressed, and she hesitated.

"Yes," she answered finally. "Let's just hope it was worth it."

* * *

><p>A HUGE thank you to Tonda2.0 for getting me back on my feet and willing to write again! I hate it when life sucks all that outta me, but thanks for the much-needed kick in the ass. My aplogies for how long it took to wrap this up :( Also a huge thank you to AlvaBlueFyre, pointyearsrule and Leo Delkin for your support. :) Thank you so much for everything! I hope you all liked it, can't wait to get feed back.<p>

Note: Epilogue, the next chapter, has an OOC and is set in the future with some content that some readers my not agree with. But that's the beauty of it being my story. If you don't like the way this ended, I would suggest not reading it. If you did, read on fair audience, read on! :)


	12. Chapter 12

"It took Wanda four days before she was conscious again, and another week before she was back to her original health. Until then the three of us hid out in Agatha's old place of residence, laying low until we could get out. I must have thought a million times about leaving a note for Tabby, but I never did. What was the point? By now, no one would even remember my name, even her. Wanda had tapped into Magneto and Mystique to alter their memories and emotions towards both her and I, so they would never think to look for either of us ever again. Then she had sent out a huge charm to alter the memories of everyone else, wiping us both from everyone's memories, even the professor's and Jean's. Even Tabby's.

"When Wanda was restored fully, Agatha opened a series of portals that transported us from place to place until eventually we were sitting in Piotr's living room. Agatha retired herself to her room for a time, and Wanda and I sat on the couch, looking at each other with awe. To this day we can still hardly believe it worked. But now here we are, safe from any harm, happy and living our own lives."

"But what about Boom Boom?" asks Tobias. He looks so much with his moth, with black hair tousled on top of his head. His yellow eyes, so much like mine, stare up at me innocently.

"If you ask Mom really nicely, I bet she'd let you peek in on her." Eagerly, he runs out of the room to fetch Wanda. Soon enough he tows her back in, pulling at her hand as she moves too slowly for his taste. Her swelled belly only further hinders her pace.

"What is it Toby?" she asks, looking between the two of us.

"Dad says we can see Boom Boom. Is it true, is it true?" Wanda somewhat scowls at me, and I shrug.

"He asked me to tell him, for his birthday," I tell her with a smile, and she smiles back at me and shakes her head.

"You said when I was older. I'm seven now Mom! And it was a great story! Now can we see Boom Boom? Please? Please?" he prattles, begging with his huge eyes. With a sigh, Wanda sits down next to me and puts her hands together, forcing them to start glowing purple.

"Look carefully, I can't work too much with my powers with your sister on the way so I'll only do this once." Obediently, Tobias scoots closer and peers deep into Wanda's pool of magic as an image takes place.

There she is, grown as we are. She looks healthy, and happy just as I'd always hoped for her. We can't see much of her background, but I can determine the blue arm slung around her shoulder's as Nightcrawler's. I smile knowingly at Wanda, and she smiles back. So what if we did a small unethical favor for Tabby before departing? She deserves the best, and for her that's Kurt. So what if his emotions had been meddled with just the tiniest bit? Now she is treated like a princess by the man she loves. I still see no downside to this.

"What's that?" Tobias asks, pointing to something on her shoulder. I smile almost bitterly at this.

"That's her pet. Ever since we left, she's kept a pet toad. Wanda only messed with the masses memories, not emotions. Not many people besides Mystique and Magneto had emotions for the two of us. Pietro still refuses to like the color red, and Tabby has had a fascination with toads that even she can't understand. Aside from that, we are all but forgotten." Wanda lets the magic fade and leans against me as Tobias crawls up to settle himself into her lap.

"See Mom, that wasn't so bad," he tells her, and she only shakes her head.

"It's definitely a story, to be sure," she muses and kisses my cheek softly.

"Ew!" yells Toby, who shifts into a dog and runs out of the room.

"I told you I shouldn't have been using that much magic when I had him. I don't think he'll ever stay in one shape for more than an hour," she sighs and I only smile. Sure enough, black cat with yellow eyes runs back into the room and jumps onto the couch.

"Time for bed Toby," I tell him, and my son appears again.

"Awwwe, c'mon," he whines, but I shake my head.

"To bed with you!" calls Wanda playfully, using a small spell to pick him up and put him in his room. He fusses for a little bit, then falls silent. "Do you ever regret it?" she asks me quietly, and I hold her close.

"Never. Nor will I ever. I'm yours, forever and always." I can feel her smile as she kisses me softly. That familiar fire ignites and burns through my body, lighting my lungs on fire and throwing my heart into overdrive.

For as long as I live, I will never get used to that. I guess that happens, when a witch kisses a Toad.


End file.
